Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns all the books and the characters
Chapter 19 Summary: Hermione recovers from her ordeal with the Death Eaters and Madam Pomfrey while the rest of Hogwarts prepares for the holidays. With her energy, and temper, returning, Dumbledore is forced to reveal to Hermione that she must return during her break to defend charges brought by Fudge and the Ministry of Magic for underage apparation.
Chapter 20: Trial by Fire
Harry couldn't foster any sense of excitement as Christmas came and went. There was no one to celebrate with, other than the teachers, who he really only saw during meals. He had given Dobby his present, a pair of socks with gold and maroon stripes and another with polka dots, Christmas morning and had enlisted Hedwig to owl Ron and Hermione theirs. Ron received a book on great Keepers in Quidditch History and Hermione a giant compendium on Defense, full of Potions, offensive and defensive hexes, charms, and even defensive transfiguration. He had taken Hagrid his present in person on Christmas day: a cookbook for 101 Ways to Make a Delicious Fruitcake. He hoped that maybe the recipes would lead Hagrid away from his preferred rock cakes and towards something more edible, though barely. In return, Ron given him a book on Wizard's Chess strategies, to go along with the chess set he had received for his birthday, and a book from Hermione that was oddly like the one he had given her. 'I guess great minds think alike,' he thought in amusement. Hagrid's gift had been his usual - what else - rock cake. Harry had unabashedly stuffed it in his truck, next to Uncle Vernon's old socks. He valued his teeth too much to try and risk eating one.
Though Harry was the sole student, the castle had been decorated magnificently. Dozens of green pine trees could be found scattered around the castle, as well as mistletoe, ornaments, icicles hanging in the Great Hall, and even a snowman in the Gryffindor common room that was charmed not to melt.
But now, the holiday had come and gone. Although the decorations were still up, the solemn emptiness of the castle echoed in Harry's mind. He found himself growing lonelier each day, since there was no one his age to talk to. Hedwig had flown repeatedly through the snow to deliver letters and parcels to Harry's friends, always returning with several replies clutched in her talons. His friends, true to their promise, had written him faithfully during the holiday.
With what little excitement he had mustered for the holiday gone, the days dragged by increasingly slowly. During yet another dull, tedious day, a lone figure sat at the table in the center of the Great Hall, idly shuffling a pair of cards. Boredom was clear on his face as he resigned himself to dealing the cards for yet another game of solitaire.
"Red nine goes here," Harry mused idly, placing the card in its position, "and black queen goes here." Within ten minutes, he had won the game, and was desperately searching for another way to occupy his time.
"There aren't any other students here, I don't have homework, and I'm not desperate enough to go to the library just for fun." He grimaced. "Not yet anyway." Leaning back in his chair, he considered the rest of his options, and discovered he had very few. "I've already had way too much practice at solitaire, so that's out. So are Exploding Snap and Wizard's Chess, since its hard to play those alone." He though for a few moments. "That leaves either staring into space or finding someone to talk too. Since the only people in the castle are teachers, it would have to be one of them. But the only teacher I want to talk to though is Hagrid, and he's not here." He should know. He had gone down to the half-giant's hut at least four times already. Hagrid was no where to be seen.
"Ah, but he is here, Harry." Harry jumped as the voice broke through the silence. Spinning around, he saw Dumbledore standing in front of him, looking over his half-moon glasses at Harry, blue eyes twinkling in amusement.
"He is?" asked Harry, somewhat befuddled. "I was just there, not fifteen minutes ago, and I didn't see him."
"He has only just returned from an errand I sent him on in Hogsmeade. I'm sure he will be thrilled to learn that you were looking for his company and will entertain you with some tea and his… delicious rock cakes."
Harry stifled a chuckle. Hagrid's rock cakes were hard enough to crack several teeth on. He offered them to Harry and his friends nearly every time they visited, and though he meant well, didn't seem to realize that his rock cakes were inedible to anyone but himself.
"They are an… unusual concoction, sir," Harry grinned. "I think I'll head on down there, then. Seeing Hagrid is much better than sitting here doing nothing."
"Hagrid is an excellent cure for boredom," Dumbledore concurred.
Harry stood. "Thank you, sir." Dumbledore dismissed his thanks with a wave of his hand and gestured towards the door. Harry grinned at the Headmaster before talking off, quickly making his way through the halls of the castle and outside. Shoving his hands in his pockets as he met the frigid outside air, he hurriedly made his way to Hagrid's hut, eager to see his friend as well as escape the cold.
When he reached the hut of his dear friend, The Groundskeeper and Keeper of Keys, he knocked loudly on the door. "Hagrid?" he called.
In seconds flat, the door swung open. "Harry!" Hagrid swept him into a bone-breaking hug. "I was hopin' ye'd come down ter see me! Come on inside!" He ushered Harry inside, leading him to a chair before going off to pour him a mug of tea. "Right cold weather we're havin', even fer this time o' year! This'll help ya ward off the chill a bit, Harry." He handed the steaming mug to Harry, who wrapped his cold hands around it and took a grateful sip, wincing slightly as the hot liquid scalded his mouth. He blew some of the steam from it and took another sip.
Once he had thawed somewhat, he asked Hagrid, "Dumbledore told me he had sent you on an errand in Hogsmeade. So what did he have you doing, Hagrid? I came down here a couple times before, but you weren't here."
"You came down here before?" Hagrid beamed. "He sent me ta get some special sorta fertilizer fer the school plants so they don' freeze up in this cold."
"Oh." Harry took another sip of his tea. After a moment, he queried, "Anything else new, Hagrid?"
Hagrid shook his shaggy head. "Na, not much for me ta be doing, wha' with tha students be'n gone and all. Dumbledore still sends me on coupla errands now an' then, but no' much. But tha's 'nough 'bout me. What have you been up too? Prob'ly not much for ye to be doing either, seeing as yeh're the only one in the castle."
"I must admit, it's been pretty boring," Harry agreed. "I've been playing solitaire, that's a Muggle game," he clarified quickly, seeing the confused look on Hagrid's face. "The only thing I've really been doing is writing Ron and Hermione. We've written quiet a bit over break," he laughed. "I think we've pretty much worn Hedwig out. Things should pick up in a few days, since Hermione's coming back in a week, though, for her hearing with the Ministry."
"Wha' hearing with the Ministry?" Hagrid cried in outrage. "Our Hermione's never done nothing wrong in her life! Wha' 'ave those dolts accused 'er of, Harry?"
Harry, equally as enraged at the 'Ministry of Morons' said scornfully, "They-well, Fudge at least - says that, when she escaped, she apparated illegally because she's underage. So, she's being called back in week for her hearing. Dumbledore's going to defend her."
Hagrid relaxed slightly. "Oh, she'll be all right then. Dumbledore'll get her off, don' worry. Great man, Dumbledore, great man."
Harry nodded. "I'm just angry she's been called there in the first place," he said bitterly. "Isn't it bad enough that she had to go through being kidnapped and tortured for weeks? Now that she's finally back home, they have to punish her for getting away from all of that! There's no logic to it!" He reflected for a moment. "Of course, there's never any logic to anything the Ministry does. Fudge has seen to that."
"I'm no' usually one ta speak bad o' the Ministry, but that Fudge…" Hagrid shook his head. "He's bad news, what wi' all he's said 'bout you, and now this business wi' Hermione…" He shook his head again. "Somethin's no' right wi' the man, tha's all I can say."
Harry nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. He stayed and chatted for a few minutes until he saw the shadows descending on the castle outside. Standing, he yawned and stretched. "I should probably head back now, Hagrid. It's getting dark."
Hagrid glanced out the window. "Blimey! I hadn't realized it was getting' tha' late! I'll walk ya back, Harry." The half-giant stood and pulled his enormous coat on. Harry pulled the wooden door open, and the pair slugged through the snow towards the castle. As they reached the steps to the castle, Harry was thankful he had Hagrid acting as a snowplow.
"Come down an' see me again soon, Harry. Be grateful for the comp'ny."
"Of course I will, Hagrid. I've got to give you your Christmas present, after all," Harry said mischievously.
Hagrid grinned. "Off with ya now! Get inside before ya freeze yeh're rear end off!"
Harry laughed. He waved to Hagrid in goodbye, swung the heavy door open, and entered. Shivering slightly in the cold, he made his way up to Gryffindor Tower.
"Jingle bells," he said when he approached the Fat Lady. She obligingly swung open, revealing the Gryffindor Common room. It seemed just as empty and quiet as it had the day before, if not more so. Sliding under his warm sheets, he drifted to sleep, thinking eagerly of Hermione's coming back to Hogwarts in a mere few days.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The next few days passed by painfully slowly. Harry would sit in the common room or the Great Hall, idly reading a book or playing yet another game of solitaire, thinking that a half-hour had gone by only to find that it had been in fact ten minutes. He visited Hagrid countless more times and even went up to Dumbledore's office. They played a round of Wizard's Chess in which Harry was thoroughly thrashed by the headmaster.
Eventually, the day of Hermione's return came. Harry stared eagerly out the window of the Great Hall, watching for any signs of her arrival. After what seemed like hours, a carriage pulled up, and Hermione stepped out. Grinning madly, he dashed through to the Entrance Hall, where Dumbledore and Hermione were already waiting.
"Harry!" Hermione shrieked, rushing towards her friend. She enveloped him in a hug before holding him at arm's length. "How have you been? Was it dreadfully boring here all alone? Did you like your Christmas present? I wasn't sure what to get you!"
Harry laughed. "Slow down, Hermione! I've been fine here, even though it was incredibly boring, but that should change now that you're here. I loved my present, thank you very much. How'd you like yours?"
She beamed excitedly. "Oh, Harry, it was wonderful! All the information in it seems so useful, and there's so much of it! I started reading it, but I've barely made a dent!"
Harry grinned. He felt the cloud of loneliness begin to disappear as he listened to Hermione's excited chatter. Dumbledore watched the pair, his eyes twinkling madly. Harry finally turned to the headmaster. "Hello, sir," he said with a happy grin. "Hello, Harry," the headmaster replied. Tilting his head towards Hermione, he said, "I believe I will leave Miss Granger in your capable hands, as I'm sure you two have lots to talk about. I do ask that you be ready for the hearing tomorrow, Miss Granger."
"Can I come with you, sir? To support Hermione?" Harry asked hopefully.
Regretfully, Dumbledore shook his head. "I'm afraid I would rather you stay here, Harry. The hearing will most likely be uneventful, but even so, I would rather you stayed here to ensure nothing goes amiss."
Harry nodded, unhappy, but resigned to his fate. Dumbledore watched him intently for a moment before saying, "Hermione will, of course, be staying with you in the Gryffindor dormitories." He turned to Hermione. "You're trunks will be brought up by the house elves later, Hermione, so you can unpack and get settled again." Hermione frowned slightly at the mention of house elves, but nodded. "I leave her in your hands, Harry." With a smile and a nod of farewell, the headmaster departed, leaving the two standing alone.
"Shall we head on up?" Harry suggested. Hermione nodded, and the pair made their way up the flights of stairs before making their way to the familiar portrait. Harry said the password and they quickly found themselves standing in the middle of the common room.
"Even though I was only gone for a few days, I missed the castle so much. It's wonderful to be back," Hermione said as she curled into an armchair near the fire, content. Harry collapsed on a sofa across from her.
"So, how was your Christmas?" Harry asked curiously.
"Oh, it was wonderful!" Hermione exclaimed. "It was great to get to see my parents again! It almost seemed like… another world, completely different than this one. No wars, no Voldemort, no death, just… life as it should be, I guess." She shrugged slightly.
Harry smiled sadly. "But life is never as it should be, right? I mean, the Ministry's current antics prove that well enough," he said with contempt.
Hermione nodded, a mix of irritation, annoyance, and anger replaced the melancholic look in her eyes. "Even though I can see why the Ministry is holding this hearing, I still think it's idiotic," she said heatedly.
Harry smiled ruefully. "I swore before you came here that I wouldn't talk about your trial," he said. "But there goes that idea, eh?"
Hermione grinned, her attitude becoming more upbeat. 'I'm not worried," she said confidently. "I think Dumbledore will be able to convince the Wizengamot that what I had to do was necessary."
"Even though Fudge is an idiot, the rest of the Wizengamot seems intelligent enough to see through Fudge's asinine accusations. Madame Bones seemed sensible enough when I saw her at my hearing last year." Despite his reassuring tones, Harry still had a niggling feeling that Fudge would cause something to go wrong, despite Dumbledore's predictions of an uneventful day. Slightly annoyed at himself for letting those doubts cloud his excitement at being reunited with his friend, he pushed his fears to the back of his mind.
"It'll be over soon enough. By tomorrow, it will all be over." Hermione paused a moment. "I do wish you could come, though," she said softly. Harry leaned over and squeezed her hand lightly.
"Me too, 'Mione. Me too."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Harry watched dejectedly as Dumbledore and Hermione made their way across the grounds and outside the school gate. Once they were outside the school grounds, they disapparated. Harry stared for a few moments at the spot they had previously occupied before turning and going back inside the castle, apprehension, worry, and fear clouding his mind. Good luck, Hermione, he said silently. I have a feeling you're going to need it.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hermione followed Dumbledore into the Ministry with a mixture of awe, dread, and painful memories. The last time we were here was when Voldemort ambushed us. When Sirius died, she thought sadly. Maybe this time will go better than last time. She could only hope.
They made their way through the halls of the Ministry, the object of several curious glances. The headmaster of Hogwarts was not an unusual occurrence in the Ministry, but a student was.
All too soon, Hermione found herself standing in front of the room where her hearing would be held. It was guarded by an innocuous wooden door, yet Hermione found herself filled with sudden anxiety over what lay behind it. As she took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders, Dumbledore gave her a reassuring smile. "All will be well, Miss Granger," he intoned calmly. "Remember, you have done nothing wrong." Hermione nodded, her resolve and confidence strengthening once more. With one final deep breath, she turned the handle and pulled the door open. She walked in, head held high, followed by Dumbledore.
The room was darker than she had expected. Its stone walls were cast with shadows from nearby flickering torches. At the front of the room what seemed like dozens of people clothed in deep purple robes were seated in high benches. Hermione only recognized Madame Bones, who was sitting next to the Minister. Fudge was seated in the center, watching smugly as they made their way to the front.
"Dumbledore," Fudge nodded curtly, "Miss Granger. Take your seats. Now that the accused is present, along with her defense, Albus Dumbledore, let us begin."
"This hearing of the twenty-eighth of December," Fudge began, somewhat superciliously, "is to decide what disciplinary action will be taken against one Hermione Jane Granger, for infractions concerning the Decree for the Restriction of Underage Apparation. The charges are that the accused knowingly and deliberately apparated into Hogwarts grounds, which constitutes an offense under Paragraph A of the Decree."
Fudge turned and stared imperiously down at Hermione. "You are Hermione Jane Granger, correct?"
"Yes," Hermione said, her voice steady.
"And you knowingly apparated from an undetermined location into Hogwarts grounds several weeks ago, correct?"
Hermione paused. "No," she said finally.
The members of the Wizengamot began muttering. Fudge's eyes narrowed in surprise and disconcertment. "What do you mean, no? May I remind you that you are obligated to tell the truth, Miss Granger," Fudge remonstrated, his voice hard and unsympathetic.
"I am telling the truth, Minster," Hermione said calmly. "I apparated without being aware of it, accidentally, if you will. In my desperation to return to Hogwarts and escape from the Death Eaters holding me captive," she emphasized, "I apparated unintentionally into the middle of the Quidditch field at Hogwarts."
"Even so, you admit to breaking the law regarding Underage Apparition, do you not?" All traces of discomfiture were gone from Fudge's voice, replaced by a superior smirk.
"Yes," Hermione said readily. Several members of the Wizengamot raised their eyebrows at her forthright response. "However," she continued, unruffled, "had I been aware of what I was doing, the fact that I was escaping from being held captive, starved, and tortured for weeks would have been slightly more prominent in my mind than the fact that I was breaking a law by doing so."
'If I may?" Dumbledore stood and waited for the acquiescence of the court before continuing. "Minister, members of the Wizengamot, although Miss Granger did indeed break the law regarding Underage Apparation, her reasons for doing so were hardly criminal. In fact, they were quite the opposite. The sole motive for her apparation was to escape her captors and return to Hogwarts. She has suffered through weeks of torture at the hands of these Death Eaters. I must respectfully ask the court, who are we to prolong such suffering by bringing her to trial for escaping? Why are we punishing her for fleeing those who we seek to defeat?" With those words, Dumbledore sat, his face calm and serene even as the Wizengamot broke into whispers once more. Fudge fidgeted slightly in his chair, clearly uncomfortable, his face slowly turning red.
"Well-I…" Flustered, Fudge fell silent.
"I must say, Minister," Madame Bones broke in, "that I agree with Dumbledore here. Although the girl did break the law, her reasons for doing so hardly constitute punishment! In my opinion, there is no reason to keep her here. All those in favor of clearing the defendant of all charges?" Bones's voice rang. After a minute of urgent whispering, the majority of the hands in the room rose into the air. Satisfied, Bones nodded. "Very well. All charges are dropped. Miss Granger," the witch turned a kind eye towards Hermione, "you are free to go."
Hermione smiled and nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Madame Bones, Minister," she said as she stood. Pausing, she added hesitantly, "I was wondering, could I say something?"
After a moment, Madame Bones shrugged, then nodded. "I see no harm in it. What do you have to say, Miss Granger?" Fudge simply scowled.
Hermione plunged in. "Since I'm here, I wanted to bring up another aspect of my escape." Madame Bones raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Bolstered, Hermione continued. "The only reason I was able to get away from the Death Eaters in the first place was because of the kind help of a house elf. She helped me remove the shackles that chained me to the wall and distracted her master while I escaped, all at great risk to herself. House elves are remarkable creatures, Madame Bones, but no one ever pays any attention to them because they are considered inferior. To aid them in their plight, I have created an association called Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, or S.P.E.W.. I believe that house elves should be treated as members of society instead of as servants as they are now. House elves do so much for us with little or no acknowledgement, often getting punished if they do something wrong!" Hermione's voice rose slightly in enthusiasm. "They are not slaves! They should be treated with respect, like creatures with feeling and thoughts. It's unfair, unjust, and simply wrong."
The end of her speech was greeted with silence. Madame Bones finally spoke. "Well, Miss Granger, your views will certainly be taken into consideration. You made several good points, and I commend you for your… social awareness and outspokenness."
Hermione blushed slightly. "Thank you, Madame Bones, for taking the time to listen."
Bones smiled slightly as she queried, "Is there anything else you feel the need to discuss, Miss Granger?" Hermione shook her head somewhat sheepishly. "Then that will be all." She turned away in dismissal.
As Hermione and Dumbledore walked through the chamber to leave, Hermione stopped and turned to Dumbledore. "Sir, I had one more question, actually."
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "And what would that be?"
"Just how did I get into Hogwarts? I mean, you can't apparate into Hogwarts grounds. Everyone knows that. There are all these wards in place and-"
"I am well aware of what wards are in place protecting Hogwarts, Miss Granger, as I created many of them my self," Dumbledore interrupted amusedly. Hermione colored slightly. "In answer to your question, Miss Granger, I simply keyed the wards to allow you, or someone bringing you, to apparate in. Although I believed it was highly unlikely you would do so, I wanted to be sure I had covered all possible avenues. And, as it turned out, your propensity for being far ahead of your peers demonstrated that it was very lucky I did."
"Oh," Hermione smiled in embarrassment, as she absorbed the new information. "I didn't know that could be done."
"We learn something new everyday, don't we?" Dumbledore said cheerfully.
Hermione's response was interrupted by a scream as a door near the front of the hall exploded and swarms of black robed figures ran in, firing curses randomly as they tried to make their way towards Dumbledore and Hermione.
Hermione gasped. Dumbledore pushed her away from the fighting, towards the far corner of the hall. "Stay there, out of sight. Do not fight unless directly challenged," he warned, before running to fight the Death Eaters.
Hermione hid, terrified, behind a wooden bench. The Death Eaters all seemed to be congregating in a circle around Dumbledore, who was standing in front of the Wizengamot bench. Fudge stood openmouthed, staring at the commotion before him. Shouts of incantations rang through the hall, and streams of light shot everywhere, most of them aimed at Dumbledore.
"Protego!!" Dumbledore shouted. A shield sprang up, causing the curses to bounce back, forcing some Death Eaters to dive out of the way. Infuriated, they increased their spell volley. In their anger, some of the spells were increasingly off target, hitting the walls, desks, and ceiling.
Though she was terrified, Hermione felt the urge to join the fray and fight, but heeded Dumbledore's warning and stayed put, watching anxiously.
Fudge, now raised from his shell-shocked state, was shouting furiously. What he was yelling, Hermione was unable to hear over the din of the battle. Suddenly from somewhere near the door, a flash of green light arced towards Dumbledore. Leaping to the side, the bolt missed the headmaster by the narrowest of margins and passed by only to strike the distracted Fudge square in the chest. His shouts of anger suddenly silenced and his face drawn blank he slowly fell backwards onto a chair, his head tilting backwards, and his eyes vacant.
Almost as suddenly as they had come, the Death Eaters fled, leaving a scene of confusion and chaos behind. The majority of the Wizengamot were staring at Fudge, stunned into silence. Dumbledore immediately hurried to Hermione. "We must leave. Now," he instructed, pulling her out the door. Still somewhat dazed, Hermione followed Dumbledore out of the Ministry, and in no time at all found herself walking back towards the Hogwarts gates.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Harry had been sitting in the common room, anxiously awaiting Hermione's return from her hearing. She's been gone for hours, he though agitatedly. She has to be-
Suddenly, a searing pain in his scar cut off his thoughts. Doubled over and gasping for breath, he felt anger raging through him, anger that was not his own.
Harry groaned. "He must be really mad at someone," he managed through gritted teeth. After a few moments, the stabbing pain dulled somewhat and his eyes were able to refocus. Regaining his wits, Harry realized he had to tell Dumbledore.
'But how?' he thought desperately. 'Dumbledore's gone!' Running through his options, he quickly decided on McGonagall and staggered out of the common room towards the Transfiguration teacher's office, praying she was inside.
He yanked the door open with a clatter. McGonagall looked up, startled. "Mr. Potter, what in Merlin's name is going on!"
"My scar… really bad. Voldemort's angry…don't know what," he managed, breathing heavily from his run. The professor paled, and she hastily stood and walked towards the door. "We need to tell Dumbledore about this immediately."
"But he's not-"
"He just returned a moment ago," McGonagall said shortly.
Harry followed her up the staircases and through the winding corridors until they reached the familiar gargoyle guarding Dumbledore's office.
"Canary creams," she said clearly, and the gargoyle slid open to reveal a winding staircase. McGonagall briskly walked up, followed by Harry.
Not bothering to knock, McGonagall opened the door and ushered Harry inside.
Harry brightened slightly when he saw Hermione sitting across from Dumbledore, but his spirits fell once more when he noted the shock and disbelief on her face.
Rushing to the headmaster's desk, Harry burst out, "Voldemort's really angry about something, Professor, but I don't know what."
"I'm afraid I do, Harry," Dumbledore said in a heavy, somber tone. "Minister Fudge is dead."