Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, or any of the bits of lyrics that appear here in this fic. No money was exchanged, and it's all in good fun.
A/N: This is the chapter where things really start to fall apart at the seam. If you're not familiar with the previous three chapters, this one will seem really out there, but if you've been paying attention, there's a few clues in here that should shed a bit of light on why things are happening. Enjoy!
Chapter 4: The Search for Harry
-----~-----
When I read your letter I couldn't believe that you'd gone.
I dialed your number, but no one answered the phone.
I asked your friends to tell me if they knew where you were,
they said they thought that you were ill.
I hired a detective to try and find out where you are.
He managed to trace you; he said you were living in France.
A watchman saw you climb into someone else's car
and drive off laughing in the night.
Why didn't you tell me?
Excerpt from the song 'So Long' by Fischer Z
-----~-----
Hermione appeared inside of the large garden shed in the back yard of her house. She sat upon her father's riding lawn mower, crossed her arms over the steering wheel and started crying in earnest. It seems that crying was the activity she spent most of that day doing. Her emotions had been bubbling very close to the surface since well before Dumbledore's funeral that morning. She knew she shouldn't have become so angry with Harry, he was just trying to be considerate, as always. She knew she shouldn't have told him so much about herself. She only wanted him to know she understood him at first, but then her emotions and insecurities took over.
She also knew she shouldn't have left him stranded there alone, but she was certain that if she spent one moment longer in his presence, she would have told him what she had been desperately hiding for so long. The secret that could erase Harry, as she knew him, from her life had to be kept just that... secret.
What was truly troubling her was the fact that, for the longest time, she couldn't remember the secret. It was as if it didn't exist in her mind. What brought it crashing back was seeing Harry sprawled on the bench during the train ride back from Hogwarts. The aurors had to physically pull her from his convulsing body so that they could work on him. Memories came unbidden into the forefront of her mind, memories of emotions and feelings for Harry that she couldn't for the life of her, remember having.
The fluttery sensation in her stomach as she watched him perform a terrifying dive for a silly snitch… The light-headed feeling when she'd smell the husky scent of earth and grass as he returned from the pitch… The way she could lose her train of thought looking into his eyes darkened to almost a forest green when he was in deep concentration… The adorable way his hair would 'extra unruly' look first thing in the morning…
All the things she had loved about Harry for so long… How could she have forgotten? How did the feelings she had for him before the last school year turn into mistrust? Jealousy? Suspicion? Hell, it was borderline hatred at times!
"What have I done?" she asked nobody as the sobs kept wracking her body.
It took a long while before she could fully compose herself. She only left the shed when she heard the automatic garage door open when her parent's car pulled in the driveway. When she walked into the house, she saw that her father was carrying her trunk and Crookshanks' carrier up the stairs to her room while her mother was busy in the kitchen putting away the groceries that they had picked up on their way home.
"Hello, mother," Hermione said as she entered the kitchen.
"Hello, dear, you're back early, we really didn't expect you until later." said Mrs. Granger, who didn't bother to look away from what she was doing, "I assume your friend made it home alright?"
"Yes," lied Hermione, "there was no trouble at all."
Mrs. Granger briefly looked at her daughter when she heard her hoarse voice. She noticed Hermione's puffy, red eyes and the tear stains on her blouse. Attributing her appearance to the funeral earlier in the day, she just shrugged and returned to her cooking.
"You must have had a long day, dear," said Mrs. Granger, "Why don't you go rest up a bit before dinner? I'll call you when it's ready."
Without responding, Hermione stood and left the kitchen for her room. She passed her parents' study on the way and saw the light coming from under the closed door. Her father was working.
She entered her room and opened a window, hoping that Harry wasn't too angry with her to send a note with Hedwig once he got settled into Privet Drive. She sat on her bed while Crookshanks settled on the mattress beside her.
"Oh, Crookshanks, what did I do?" said Hermione while stroking the ginger fur of her half-kneazle. "What was I thinking?" Crookshanks let out a sympathetic purr as he nuzzled under her chin.
She sat on her bed until her mother called her to dinner, where the longest conversation during the meal was "Please pass the salt." She didn't notice how her father was keeping a close eye on his daughter, paying attention to her unusual mood and how she spent an unusual amount of time arranging and rearranging the food on her plate.
After dinner, Hermione found herself back in her room. She changed, stretched out on her bed and closed her eyes while the day's events played in her mind.
"Was he really saying that he loved me? How on Earth could he? He loves Ginny! Merlin, he could have practically any girl that he wants! He surely does not want someone like me, ugly and boring. He wasn't in his right mind… he probably thought he was talking to Ginny… He doesn't even remember!"
She let out a sigh and then within moments, gave in to her physical and emotional exhaustion and fell asleep.
The next day, Hermione was disappointed to find nothing from either Ron or Harry. She tried to stay busy to keep from thinking about them, but was mostly unsuccessful. After having her friends around her daily at school, she found summertime at the Granger house to be unbearably lonely.
Two more days passed. It was nearly one in the morning when, as Hermione was just getting into her bed, a very old owl flew into her window and ungracefully crash-landed onto her floor. She thought it strange that it was the aged Weasley family owl and not Ron's owl Pigwidgeon that flopped into her window. She quickly untied the letter, gave the ancient bird a treat, then sat on her bed and began reading.
Dear Hermione,
I'm sorry I haven't had the chance to write sooner, but things have been crazy here since I got home. Of course, Mum is going mental over the preparations for Bill's wedding, so there is never a quiet moment around here. I had to send Errol with this letter because Pig has been missing since the day I arrived home.
Have you heard anything from Harry? I've been so busy that I didn't realize three whole days had passed without a word from him. He did say he was going to let us know that he got home all right, so I'm starting to get a bit worried. Maybe you can use that felly-tone to see if he's alright?
Make sure you give Errol a good rest before sending him back… Cor, I'm surprised that bloody old bird is still kicking!
I really wish you were here. I miss you.
Ron
Hermione's stomach lurched uncomfortably and she felt a sort of buzzing in her brain. She leapt from her bed and only after a momentary pause when she looked at her clock, grabbed the receiver of her phone and hit the number for Harry's house that she had programmed into the speed-dial years before, but never actually had the courage to use it.
She listened to a few clicks, then a recorded woman's voice emotionlessly informed her that the number she dialed was no longer in service. She threw the receiver roughly onto the base, quickly dressed herself, and with a loud crack she disapparated from her room.
She appeared at the Burrow on the road just beyond the broom shed, ran the short distance across the yard to the door and knocked loudly. She waited a minute, and she was about to knock again when she heard a nervous voice from behind the door, "Who's there?"
"Mrs. Weasley, please! It's Hermione!" she said, panic evident in her tone, "I think Harry's in trouble!"
Apparently, the words "Harry's in trouble" was due cause to throw the usual Burrow security questions out of the window. The door flew open to reveal a very agitated Molly, who quickly pulled her in, "Harry's in trouble? What do you mean? What happened?"
"I'm not sure, but he should have contacted us two days ago and I thought Ron must have heard from him by now, but I just got Ron's letter and I tried calling him on the phone but it's disconnected and… oh my,… Please!" Hermione was speaking very quickly as she clutched her own hands together to keep them from shaking, "I'm sure something has happened. I can feel it! We have to find out if he's ok! I'd have gone directly to him, but I've never been to the Dursleys so I can't apparate there and last I saw he was alone and…" Her voice suddenly became a whisper as a terrible thought hit her, "Oh my… It's my fault… I left him alone…"
Mr. Weasley, Ron and Ginny appeared at the bottom of the stairs and looked at Hermione with a mixture of surprise and concern.
"Ron!" Hermione ran across the kitchen and grabbed Ron's shoulders, "Something happened to Harry! I just know it! We need to go to Privet Drive… RIGHT NOW!"
"Ok," said Ron who couldn't ignore the panic in Hermione's eyes. Turning to head up the stairs, he said, "Let me get dressed real quick and I'll…"
"No," said Mr. Weasley, "I'll go, you children stay here."
"We're not children," Ron said coldly, "and I'm going."
"We both are!" said Hermione.
"You can't keep me away, either!" added Ginny, who was already halfway up the stairs.
"None of you can apparate there… I am going alone." said Mr. Weasley firmly.
"Can't we floo there?" asked Hermione.
"You weren't there last time we did," said Ron, "it was a right mess, and his house isn't connected to the network now, anyway."
Mr. Weasley threw his cloak over his pajamas and walked to the door, "I promise I'll be right back to let you know what I find." He then stepped out into the yard and apparated away with a soft crack.
Hermione, Ron and Ginny sat at the kitchen table while Molly made a pot of tea.
Hermione turned to Ron, "Are you sure you haven't heard anything from Harry? You still haven't found Pig yet?"
Hermione noticed a sudden guilty look come across Ginny's face when she mentioned Pigwidgeon, "What's wrong, Ginny?"
"Well…" She began, looking down at her hands in her lap, "don't get mad, Ron, but I sort of 'borrowed' Pigwidgeon to deliver a letter for me. I thought he'd be back by now."
Ron's eyes narrowed, "Who was this letter to?"
Ginny kept her eyes in her lap, twisting her fingers together.
"It was to Harry, wasn't it?" asked Ron, "Listen, Ginny, you know he broke up with you to protect you."
Molly dropped the teacup she was holding, "Harry broke up with Ginny? But I thought…"
"Mum, he just doesn't want… you know who… finding out that she has a relationship with Harry. She'd be one of… 'his…' biggest targets."
"You shouldn't make things more difficult for him right now, Ginny," said Hermione, "Harry has enough problems at the moment."
"Especially after what happened on the train ride home…" added Ron flippantly.
Hermione elbowed Ron hard in the ribs.
"What happened on the train?" asked Molly icily, glaring between Ron and Hermione.
"So he told you, did he?" said Ginny, not looking up from her hands.
"He didn't have to tell us, we were right there…," said Ron while massaging his freshly bruised ribs. Ginny's head snapped up with a look of confusion in her eyes.
"You were right there for what?" asked Molly, getting slightly annoyed at being ignored.
"I should have insisted he go to St. Mungo's…" said Hermione.
Both Molly and Ginny stood up and yelled in unison "What happened to Harry?"
"Well," began Hermione, "he hadn't been sleeping well since Professor Dumbledore's death, and he hasn't been eating that much either. When we met up with him after our rounds, he was acting rather odd…"
"…acting mental, he was," interrupted Ron, "he talked about seeing things like you saw with the boggart… I don't know what he meant by that, though…"
Molly's eyes widened and she put her hand over her mouth, "Oh, dear!"
Hermione, noticing Molly's reaction, asked her, "What did happen with a boggart?"
"I… well…" Molly's voice was hoarse, "It was at Grimmauld Place, the summer before last. You remember that boggart that was in the writing desk in the drawing room?" They nodded and let her continue, "Well, I've never had a problem with boggarts before, but with everything going on…" she paused to compose herself, "I went to get rid of it and when I opened the desk… when I opened it… Percy fell out. He was dead."
Ron and Hermione gave each other worried glances.
"I cast the Riddikulus spell, but the boggart only changed to Arthur's body, then to Bill's… then to Ron's, Fred's… Harry's…" Molly let out a sob and wiped her eyes, "Harry found me, and then Remus. Remus had to get rid of it for me… I just couldn't think of any way to make it funny… I couldn't…" Molly turned away clutching a hastily conjured handkerchief to her face.
"Harry kept saying he saw us dead." said Hermione as she wrinkled her brow in thought.
"But there wasn't a Boggart on the train," observed Ron, "a boggart couldn't have killed him, anyway…"
"What do you mean, 'killed him'?" asked Ginny with a thoroughly shocked look on her face.
"Well, he didn't die," said Hermione quickly, "but it was terribly close… if that auror wasn't on the train, I think he would have died."
"Oh, no!" whispered Ginny to herself, "It couldn't be…" She jumped from her seat and ran up to her room.
Hermione instantly became suspicious and was just about to follow her when Arthur entered the kitchen through the door and drove all thoughts of Ginny from her mind when he spoke.
"We've got trouble," he said, "I looked through Harry's house, but it's empty."
"Harry's not there?" asked Ron.
"Nothing's there, no people, furniture, nothing at all. No sign of a struggle, either. It looks as though it's been empty for quite a while."
Hermione jumped up with her hand over her mouth, "Oh, my! It's my fault! I should have stayed with him! I knew I should have stayed with him when his uncle didn't show to pick him up! How could I have been so stupid? It's all my fault!"
"Dursley wasn't there at King's Cross Station?" asked Arthur, "and you left him there?"
"He didn't give me much of a choice," said Hermione defensively, "when he insisted that I leave him there I got angry and we got into a row. You know how independent he is. He said he was going to take the Knight Bus to Surrey."
"Maybe he went to Grimmauld Place?" said Ron, "I know he hates it there, but if he didn't come here, he might have thought that was the best place to go."
"Grimmauld Place isn't safe now, I'll go check there," said Arthur, "You kids stay here, don't do anything until I get back."
Ron and Hermione both stood up, "we're going too," said Ron.
"We can help search the house," added Hermione as she ran to the door, "we can search it faster with three of us." Without waiting for a reply, she ran into the yard beyond the wards and disapparated with a loud crack.
Hermione found herself in the middle of the small square at Grimmauld Place, just as grimy and unwelcoming as she remembered. She glanced around at the rubbish-strewn street, and seeing no one, she rushed to the area between eleven and thirteen. She didn't even begin to concentrate on the Order's address when number twelve inflated before her. Without wasting a moment, she drew her wand, ran up the stairs and began to unlock the door. She had just managed to get the door open when Arthur and Ron arrived and joined her in the darkness of the main hall.
Ron started the search in the basement, kitchen and living rooms, Arthur made his way to the roof, attic, and the upper floors while Hermione checked the bedrooms and the library. They soon had every room searched with no sign that Harry or anyone had been there at all.
They met in the drawing room. Ron sat on the couch, Arthur seated himself in the wing-backed chair facing him while Hermione paced nervously across the room between them.
"Why did I leave him? I should have stayed with him…" Hermione was sounding more and more frantic, "I knew something wasn't right. Why did he have to be so stubborn? This is all my fault."
"Hermione," snapped Ron, which made her jump, "sit down… we're not sure anything bad has happened to him."
"But Ron, you know as well as I do that he needed to go back to those wretched people," said Hermione while continuing to pace the floor, "I really don't know the nature of the protection he gets from his aunt, but Dumbledore insisted that Harry go back there to keep it. Maybe he went to look for the Dursleys? I don't know where else he would go. What if he was found by… by…" the lump in her throat kept her from finishing the sentence.
Ron stood and hugged Hermione, "He's ok, I know he is."
"Maybe he went to an inn," said Arthur, "the Leaky Cauldron or the Three Broomsticks."
"I know he didn't have any muggle money," said Hermione, "and I gave him what little wizard money I had on me. I don't think there was enough to stay at an inn for very long."
"If he is ok and did go to an inn, it would most likely be the Leaky Cauldron," said Arthur, "he would be closer to Gringott's there."
"There's nothing else we can do right now," said Ron as he tried to stifle a yawn, "it's nearly three a.m. and I don't think Tom at the inn would appreciate us barging in there at this time."
"Right," said Arthur, rising from his chair, "We'll check with Tom first thing. You're welcome to come back to the Burrow with us, Hermione, You can…"
"I can't believe you two!" screeched Hermione, "We have to find him! Maybe you can sleep, but I know I can't. Harry needs us! I'm going to the Cauldron now!"
Before either of the men could stop her, Hermione stormed out through the door, down the main hall and out into the early morning darkness. Arthur and Ron looked at each other, seeing that they both were still in their pajamas, decided to return to the Burrow to at least get changed.
"Let's inform the family as to what's going on," said Arthur, leading his son out of the house, "I'll get in touch with Lupin and Tonks."
Hermione found herself in the alley behind the Leaky Cauldron next to the concealed entrance to Diagon Alley. She stepped through the door into the darkened inn. The only light source was the crackling embers from the previous night's fire, which cast an eerie red glow in the empty room. Hermione quietly crept behind the bar and found the registration book for the inn. She lit up the tip of her wand and held her breath as she checked the logs for the past three days and found that there were only three rooms occupied, Mr. Benjamin Bones, Mr. and Mrs. Judas Hornbuckle, and Miss Agnes Applebumm.
Hermione placed the book back where she found it then walked around to the front of the bar and rested her forehead upon her crossed arms between the upturned barstools.
"Oh, Harry," she whispered to the darkness, "I'm so sorry."
-----_-----
It was a long night for Tom the barman, for the Leaky Cauldron had hosted a small birthday party for a member of the Ministry's Office of Magical Games and Sports. At around two a.m., he finally managed to get the rowdy group of drunken men and women safely onto the Knight Bus. He spent another hour cleaning up and prepared to turn in to get a few hours of sleep before he had to open the tavern again in the morning. He just retrieved his pajamas from his dresser when all of the lights in the room sprang to life, signaling that someone had entered the inn.
"Bah! One o' them blokes musta fergot sumptin'" He grabbed his wand and cracked his door open. He peeked out through the narrow gap and saw a young woman creeping behind his bar. He walked silently out of his room, keeping a wary eye on her as she examined the guest register for a moment, then replaced it and bowed her head on the bar top. As he drew near behind her, he heard her whisper something. He was about to grab her shoulder to give her what for, when she let out a small sob.
His eyes softened and he lowered his arm, "Excuse me, miss…," he said softly.
The young lady started and turned around quickly with her wand raised. She still had a small tear running down her cheek. Her brown eyes were puffy, with bags under them that made it appear as if she hadn't had a decent night's sleep in days.
"Yer that frien' o' Harry Potter… Hermione Granger?" asked Tom, "What ya doing here this time o' the mornin'? When I saws ya sneakin behin' the bar, I thoughts ya was a thief 'r summut."
Hermione lowered her wand and tried to compose herself, "Oh, Tom, you scared me, I didn't want to disturb you."
"What was ya doin' wit' the register?" Tom saw the worried look on her face, and he thought it a shame that a girl so young wore eyes that looked so sad.
"Harry's been missing for a few days and we thought he might be here. We're just so worried about him, we thought that he may be in trouble."
"Missing? Why, I saw him jus' yesserday, miss…"
"You saw him? Here?" Hermione said excitedly, "What was he doing? Did he look alright?"
"I'm pretty sure it was him," answered Tom, "I only gots a quick look at him, tore from the upstairs an' out the front door, he did… never heard a word from him."
"Out into muggle London?"
"Aye, I didn' see which way he wen' though. I dunno what 'e was doin' up there, he hasn't a room, unless he was visitin' summun up there…"
Hermione thought for a moment, and then her heart sank. It never occurred to her that maybe Harry had found someone he liked. Maybe after seeing his house deserted, he took up company with one of the 'ladies' from Knockturn Alley. As innocently as she could, she asked, "Can I please see the register again?"
"Well, ya knows yer not really s'posed to look at it, but seein' it's fer Harry…"
Tom walked behind the bar and put the guest register in front of Hermione. She took a deep breath before opening the cover and looked down onto the names again.
"Do you know these people?" asked Hermione, her voice suddenly went icy as she focused on one name, "Who is this one, 'Agnes Applebumm'?"
"Arr, she's a sweet one." He answered, "Visitin' her family here in London, she is. Insisted on staying here, so's not to be a burden on 'em, very inderpendent for summun o' her age.
Hermione felt her stomach twinge when Tom said she was a 'sweet one.' She couldn't help herself when she asked, "A sweet one? She must be very pretty." The iciness hadn't left her voice.
"Well, I wouldn't 'zactly call her pretty, though I'm sure she was stunnin' abou' a hunnert an' fifty years ago."
"Oh," she said, only slightly less coldly until his words were fully absorbed in her brain, "Oh…! One hundred and fifty years? How old is she?"
"Tha's why she's in town, it's her hunnert an' eightieth birthday tomorrer."
Hermione felt her face blush with embarrassment, hoping that Tom didn't catch on to what had passed through her head about Agnes, but she wasn't about to give up on this train of thought yet. Her eyes landed on the couple's names, Mr. and Mrs. Judas Hornbuckle. Maybe they checked in under assumed names…? Assumed married names?
"What about this couple, do you think Harry might have visited them?"
"I don' think so, they're here from Bristol, Ministry business, I believe."
"And this one, Benjamin Bones?"
"Arr, I know that un well, good frien', he is. Related to Amelia Bones, rest 'er soul… An auror, too, terrible nice feller. Said his house was being worked on an' needed a few days here. Anyway, I don' see why Harry would be visitin' him. Harry doesn't know many aurors, do he? Funny, that, now that I think on it… I haven't seen Ben since the night he checked in, not fer meals or nuthin'"
"Well, that's strange, isn't it? I would have thought you'd see him going to and from work, at least."
"Well, I'll check in on him in the mornin' to be sure evvythin's ok." Tom gave Hermione an apologetic smile and patted her on the shoulder, "I'm sorry I couldn' a' been more help to ya, missy, are ya gonna be ok yerself? Ye don' look too well…"
"I'll be all right," said Hermione wistfully, "If Harry comes back can you get in touch with Arthur Weasley?" Hermione thought for a moment that Harry may just want to be alone and she certainly didn't want him to think he was being spied upon, "No, just tell him that his friends are worried about him and ask him to please get in touch with me, err… us."
"Alrigh' I'll tells him if I sees him."
"I'll go inform my friends that he was spotted here. Thanks a lot, Tom. At least we know he's still alive."
When Hermione appeared in the front yard of the Burrow, she could see by the shadows through the window that the kitchen was a beehive of activity. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Ron were sitting at the kitchen table with Remus and Tonks, both of whom had obviously left their flat in a rush, as they were still dressed in their nightclothes under their hastily donned cloaks. Arthur looked as though he were telling the two new arrivals of the situation so far. Their discussion abruptly stopped and they all looked expectantly at Hermione as she entered the room.
"He's not at the Leaky Cauldron," started Hermione in a nervous voice, "but Tom said he spotted him leaving the inn yesterday. He might have been visiting someone staying there, but nobody on the guest register looked very likely, an old lady visiting relatives, a couple here for the Ministry, and an auror."
"Oh?" said Tonks, with her eyes narrowing, "Why would an auror be staying at the Cauldron? Do you know who it was?"
"The name on the register was Benjamin Bones, Tom said he was staying there because his house was being remodeled or something. Do you know him?"
Tonks didn't answer at once, she sat staring for a minute, deep in thought.
"There is an auror barracks in Diagon Alley, if he needed a place to stay, he would have gone there…" stated Tonks as she stood and walked to the fireplace, "Hang on a mo'"
Tonks grabbed a handful of Floo Powder, tossed it in the fire and kneeled before the hearth.
"Benjamin Bones!" she called out clearly into the now green flames.
After a minute, a grim-faced head appeared, "Oy, Tonks!" said Ben, "What's wrong? It's an odd time for a social call…"
Hermione immediately recognized the face. He was the auror that saved Harry's life on the Hogwarts Express just days before.
"Wotcher, Ben, are you home right now?" she asked pleasantly.
"A'course I am! Where else would I…" Ben's face visibly fell into a concerned frown, "Oh dear, this is about young Mr. Potter, isn't it." He let out an audible sigh, "What happened?"
"We were hoping you could tell us," answered Remus, who moved beside Tonks.
Ben sighed, "Well, as you know, I was assigned on the Hogwarts Express a few days ago. I saw that Harry's ride failed to show. He and his girlfriend waited for a while, but then they got into a bit of a spat…"
At the mention of Harry's 'girlfriend', Hermione's face blanched while Ron's jaw dropped and his face went the color of his hair. He glared at Hermione, who was so shocked she couldn't utter a word.
"When the young lady left," continued Ben, "I offered to accompany him to his home, I couldn't leave a student stranded, you know… especially not Harry Potter…"
Hermione dropped her head into her hands, still feeling ill thinking about that night and how stranding him was exactly what she did.
"We grabbed a bite, and then went to deliver him to his house, but it appeared his family up and left. Obviously, Harry was quite distraught. At that point, he wanted to go to the Leaky Cauldron, but we both were concerned with his safety. The only way I could get him to stay there was if I put the room under my name and promised him I would not include his whereabouts in my report."
"So he is there!" said Hermione as she jumped from her chair and rushed for the door, only to be stopped by Ron. He had grabbed her arm a little more roughly than he intended, which earned him a reproachful glare from Hermione.
"Hermione, maybe he wants to be alone, did you even think of that?" said Ron in a voice just shy of a yell.
Hermione jerked her arm out of Ron's grasp and a fierceness blazed in her eyes, "Listen to me, you prat, don't you see what's going on with him? Can you imagine how abandoned and alone he must feel?" Pushing her finger into his breastbone, she continued, "You know what happened to him on the train. Don't you care at all about what happens to him? I can't believe you would just turn your back on him like you did during the tournament!"
Ron glared viciously at Hermione. He opened his mouth, but finding himself at a total loss for words closed it again and gave her the foulest sneer he could conjure.
Hermione turned on her heel and purposefully strode to the door, shouting, "Well, I for one refuse to abandon him like those awful muggles did! Not again!" She slammed the door behind her, ran into the yard beyond the anti-apparation wards and disappeared in an unusually loud crack, which shook the Burrow's windows.
When she reappeared in the alley behind the inn, she reeled and leaned against the brick wall leading to Diagon Alley. Her spent emotions, lack of sleep and the stress of repeated apparations were definitely wearing on her. It took her a few moments to steady herself before she entered the tavern of the Leaky Cauldron.
"Lumos!"
She lit her wand, rushed through the room to Tom's door and knocked loudly.
Tom, now in his pajamas, opened the door with an annoyed frown then, upon seeing Hermione again, his face only slightly softened, "Oh, it's you missy, I told yas I'd be check…"
"Please! I heard from Mr. Bones' and Harry's in his room!" Hermione gave Tom a desperate look, "Can you please just check on him? I'll wait in the hall while you look, I just need to know if he's alright!"
Tom looked into her worried face and sighed. He grabbed his keys and headed up the stairs to the inn with Hermione close behind. He unlocked room six and quietly entered. "There's nobody here, miss, but there be summut odd here."
Hermione stepped into the room, and at once her ears were assaulted with loud, shrill hooting as a softball-sized owl sped in an oblong orbit around her head. On the dresser was a very annoyed and hungry looking snowy owl.
"Hedwig!" cried Hermione, "See? Harry was here!"
She looked around the room and saw his still open trunk and his clothes spread out on a nearby chair. There was a box on the dresser containing an assortment of documents and lying next to the box, Harry's wand. She then noticed a small, partially opened roll of parchment lying on the floor.
She heard footsteps from the hall outside the door and the voice of Remus Lupin softly calling out, "Tom? Hermione?"
Remus and Tonks approached the partially opened door of room six and just as they entered the room, they saw Hermione pick up a roll of parchment from the floor. Her eyes opened wide and she let out a loud, shrill squeak, and then collapsed onto the floor.
As Tom, Remus and Tonks rushed to the unconscious Hermione, they saw what she had seen, Harry's broken glasses and what appeared to be a broken tooth lying in a small pool of dried blood on the floor next to where the parchment had rested.
-----~-----