First off, a big sorry for the amount of time between Chapter four and this chapter, real life is manic, and a big thank you to Meagan, my Muse and Beta reader.
Blood Moon
Chapter Five
Harry felt his feet touch the ground in the reception area of
St.Mungo's.
"Ron!" He questioned, Lupin looked at him.
"Give him some time Harry, I'm sure he's a bit confused at the moment." Harry glared at Lupin.
"I'm sure he is, let's just go and see Hermione." Lupin nodded and followed Harry up to the sixth floor, he watched in amusement as Harry rushed up to the curtains that surrounded Hermione's hospital bed and pulled them apart.
"Hey, Hermi-" Harry stopped in mid sentence when he saw that
Hermione's bed was empty, the bed covers had pushed towards the end of the bed in a haphazard way. Harry spurn around and Lupin had to step backwards to stop from being bowled over.
"Where's Hermione?" Harry asked a healer who was heading towards another bed.
"Who?" he asked perplexed.
"Hermione Granger, she's the patience that should be in that bed?"
Harry said sharply, his tone of voice rising.
"Er, I'll just..."
"WHERE IS SHE?"
Celia came running up to Harry and Lupin.
"It's okay Harry, Hermione is sitting out in the hospital garden, she went about an hour ago."
"Is she okay?" He asked, as Ceila smiled.
"She's fine, she said you might panic if you saw an empty bed, I only popped away for a few seconds and then I heard you yelling, you'll find the entrance to garden by the lift."
Harry nodded muttered a thanks and rushed off in the direction of the garden.
"Is he always like that?" Celia asked Lupin, he nodded and smiled.
"I think he gets it from his father."
Harry raced down the stone steps that led into a walled garden.
"Hermione?"
"Over here" came the reply from next to a large oak tree, Harry followed the voice to where Hermione was sitting on a bench reading with Crookshanks on her lap purring away merrily.
"You found me?" Hermione said with a grin.
"Yes, Celia told me that you were out here, is okay if I sit next to you?"
"Of course it is." Hermione moved aside a small pile of books before Harry sat down and looked around him at the small garden. A few other patients were enjoying the sun or the company of their visitors and healers. A small girl no more than eight with teddy bear stuck in her hair was playing by the side of a water fountain of a mermaid.
"That's Sara, she tried to use her mother's wand to Accio her teddy on to her shoulder but as you can see it didn't work," Hermione explained,
"The healer should be able to remove the teddy bear in a couple of days, but I think Sara likes the teddy where it is."
"I think it looks quite good, at least her teddy is always with her,"
Harry chuckled.
"She's a cute little girl, I was telling her all about Hogwarts, she said she can't wait to go herself." Harry nodded
"How long have you been sitting here for?" He asked reaching across her to tickle Crookshanks' ears.
"About an hour, I was just getting some homework out of the way, Tonks brought me more this morning."
Harry frowned. "You should take it easy Hermione."
"Why?" Hermione questioned, "I'm only here because I'm a werewolf, not on death door, it doesn't stop me from doing school work."
"Oh," Harry said softly, it finally dawned on him that this was still the Hermione he knew for almost six years. Her being a werewolf didn't change a thing. Hermione smiled softly at him and took his hand in hers.
"Harry, I'm still me, I might just be a bit furry and have sharp teeth once a month." Harry couldn't help but smile.
"I just wish Ron would see it that way?" He said squeezing her hand.
"He just needs time to think things over, he'll come around, don't worry." Hermione said just as Sara skipped over to them.
"Hiya!" she said looking up at Harry, "You're Harry Potter aren't you?"
Sara asked staring at his scar.
Harry chuckled. "Yes I am."
"WOW," Sara said in amazement "are you Hermione's boyfriend?" She blurted out, pointing to Harry and Hermione's clasped hands. Harry blushed deeply and pulled his hand away from Hermione's who was trying not to giggle.
"No"
"Then why are you holding hands for? My mum and dad hold hands and they love each other, does that mean you lo-"
"We're friends Sara," Hermione jumped in before the young witch could say anything more, "Friends holds hands as well." Hermione said trying to explain.
"Why" Sara asked again, Harry was now blushing scarlet.
"Umm..." Hermione started to say, but luckily Lupin appeared saving them. Sara smiled at them both, skipped off with the teddy bear bobbing gently up and down in her hair.
"Hello you two," Lupin said with a grin," Dumbledore has arrived and wished to speak to you Hermione."
Harry and Hermione followed Lupin out of the garden and back to the hospital wing, Crookshanks following behind them. Lupin led them to them a head healer's office where they found Dumbledore sitting.
"Feeling any better Miss. Granger?" He asked as he motioned them to sit down.
"Yes thank you" Hermione said as Crookshanks leap onto her lap.
"I think you why I am here?" Dumbledore questioned.
"Yes," Hermione nodded, "you want to know why I was in the forest the night I was attacked."
Dumbledore nodded, "but only if you're ready to Miss. Granger?"
"Yes."
"But sir, I-" Harry started to say, but Hermione stopped him, laying a hand across his.
"It's alright, Harry. I have to tell them what happened." Hermione turned and faced Dumbledore.
"It all started when I had a nightmare," Dumbledore nodded while a quill next to him made some notes on a piece of parchment. "I dreamed that Vol-Voldermort had Harry captive in the forest. Voldemort ordered me to come in the forest, otherwise he'd kill Harry." Hermione looked down at her knees and picked at a strand of loose thread, but she continued.
"I remember waking up to find myself standing in the middle of the forest. I can't remember how I got to be in the forest, but I knew that Voldemort had tricked me." Harry watched as a tear trickled down
Hermione's cheek, he reached across and slipped hand around hers and felt her fingers tighten.
"I stood there, not knowing what to do or how to get out. I couldn't even see my hand in front of my face when I heard something running through the undergrowth towards me. I broke into a run, hearing it behind me, but then I tripped and the thing... t-the werewolf crashed into me, I couldn't get up off the ground because it was pinning me. I felt its claws rip into me and then nothing... I blacked out. I came to in Hagrid's hut." Hermione stopped talking in a flood of tears. Harry was up off his seat and kneeling next to her while she wrapped her arms around him.
Dumbledore sighed softly to himself and stood, the quill dropped silently to the desk.
"Thank you, Miss Granger, I will not trouble you anymore." He turned to
Harry. "I do believe there is a tea room in this hospital, why don't you take Miss Granger with you and see if I'm correct?"
Fifteen minutes later Harry sat across from Hermione in the tea room, both had a large ice sundae in front of them. Miniature chocolate frogs hopped from one ice cream sundae to the other.
"How are you feeling?" Harry asked Hermione, she hadn't spoken since they had left Dumbledore. Hermione looked up from her ice cream.
"I'm just glad that I've finally been allowed to talk about it," Hermione said, taking a small of mouthful of ice cream. Harry nodded and watched as two chocolate frogs jumped onto Hermione's spoon. She handed one to Harry and bit the head off her own.
"When do you have to be back at Hogwarts?"
"Anytime I think, Lupin is going to come and collect me." Hermione nodded.
"What is Dumbledore's reason for me not being at school?"
"Family matters, don't worry Hermione, only myself, Ron, Lupin and Tonks and Dumbledore know the real reason."
"Good, the less people know the better." Hermione said looking down at the table. She spoke so softly that Harry barely heard her. "Harry?"
"Yes, Hermione?" Harry watched as Hermione's hand curled around her ice cream glass.
"When you were at Hagrid's did you see Bellatrix Lestrange?" she asked not looking up.
"Yes"
"Did she say why she attacked me?" Harry gulped, knowing he couldn't tell Hermione the truth.
"Sh-she just wanted to taunt me," he stammered, he was never good at lying to Hermione.
"Your lying Harry," Hermione said softly, "Did Voldemort order her to attack me?"
Harry sighed, "In a way, yes," He said, watching as Hermione's grip tighten on her glass.
"Was it to get to you? Did Voldemort order Bellatrix to attack to get to you?" Harry lowered his head.
"Yes, I'm so sorry, Hermione," he said reaching across the table to take a hold of her hand. Suddenly without warning the glass in Hermione's hand broke, the sharp glass shards cut into her hands and the table was splattered with ice cream.
"Gods! Hermione, your hand!" Harry said seeing blood seep between her fingers. Hermione glanced at her hand as she opened it to find glass embedded in her palm. Harry jumped to his feet.
"Come on, you need to see Celia," he said touching her on the arm to get her to her feet. Hermione glared at him.
"I can find her myself, you should go, Harry." She icily got to her feet.
"But...your hand?" Harry questioned.
"I said I will find her myself, just go and find Remus and go back to
Hogwarts, now!" she seethed.
Harry blinked shocked.
"Okay?" he said feeling confused but he didn't move.
"Just. Go. NOW!" she hissed at him. Harry nodded still feeling confused, turned and started to walk across the tea room, before leaving, he turned around, glancing a look at Hermione, she was still standing looking at her palm.