Disclaimer: The author makes no claims of owning Harry Potter or the Half-Blood Prince. JKR screwed that one up all by her lonesome.
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September 15th
The early morning sun was shining brightly though the Gryffindor common room's windows, its rays giving the already predominantly red and gold room a fiery glow. A fire was crackling merrily in the stone hearth, yet no heat radiated from it. A solitary figure lay on one of the many couches decorating the room, her slumbering form obviously miserable and restless. The blanket that had been placed over her sometime in the middle of the night lay tossed aside, twisted as if it had been thrown in the midst of a nightmare.
Bathed in the warm, fall sun, long, dark lashes fluttered gently open contrasting sharply against flawless fair skin and rich, chocolate eyes focused blearily on the new day. Hermione stretched gracefully like a cat, her body straining for a brief moment before collapsing back into relaxation. Her clothes were slightly rumpled from sleep and her hair was extra frizzy, but on the whole she felt pretty good. She took in her surroundings for a moment, wondering what she was doing all alone in the common room when yesterday's happenings came crashing against her consciousness like a horrendous tidal wave.
She shot up, looking around the room in a panic for some sign that Harry had come in last night. She glanced at the blanket and wondered if perhaps he had been the one who had thrown it over her last night before making his way to bed. No, Harry would have surely woken her, if only to let her know he was still alive and well after the attack.
Or would he?
Hermione worried her lip for a moment. She got off the couch and walked rapidly towards the spiral steps that led the way to the boy dormitories, her socked feet making no noise against the stone. He had been awfully angry with both her and Ron yesterday. Neither of them had spied him once on their trip through Hogsmeade. They had spent the majority of their time actively looking for him; their date abruptly cancelled because of worry for their best friend. Rather, she had called it off. Ron hadn't seemed to care whether Harry was okay or not. She would not have been able to enjoy her time with Ron while knowing Harry was somewhere out there angry, miserable and alone.
She crept up to the door labeled `Sixth Year Boys' and silently opened it a crack. She briefly stuck her head in and looked over towards Harry's bed. Mutely, she stared though its opened curtains at the already made bed; intuitively knowing it had not been slept in last night. Fear gripped her heart as she turned her eyes towards Ron's bed. The red head was laying face down on the sheets, clad in his pajamas, his snores barely muffled by the pillow his head was buried in. Apparently one of them had gotten a restful nights sleep, she thought bitterly.
For some reason it agitated her to no end that Ron was able to just pass out and sleep like he didn't have a care in the world when their best friend was still missing after a massive attack. Anger rose like a burning fire in her before she ruthlessly stomped down on it. She turned on her heels and made her way back down the steps, leaving Ron snoring where he was. If he wasn't concerned enough to be up at first light helping look for his best friend, then she wasn't going to force him.
Hermione stomped down the last few stairs, her fists clenching in anger. She felt helpless and scared. It was the not knowing that killed her and if there was one thing Hermione Granger hated, it was `not knowing'. She paused a moment at the foot of the stairs, once again biting her lip in thought. It was still very early, guaranteeing almost no students would be up at this hour. There were very few options open to her; but first she needed to check with a teacher.
If one person would know about Harry it would be…
The portrait hole quietly slid open and a wizened old wizard dressed in a set of psychedelic sleep robes and fuzzy dog slippers stepped serenely though into the common room.
"Professor Dumbledore!" Hermione exclaimed. It almost as if her turmoiled thoughts had magically summoned him. The headmaster approached and nodded somberly to the young witch, his normally jovial expression subdued. His ever present twinkle was notably back, though greatly subdued.
The fear that was gripping her heart, clenched brutally at his expression.
"Sir, please, Harry didn't come in last night," she said, her brown eyes pleading. "Do you have any word…do you know if he's ok?"
The headmaster looked at her in sympathy, though his gaze betrayed nothing. He looked as if he'd aged another ten years since yesterday. He gestured towards the portrait hole.
"Miss Granger, please, if we could continue this elsewhere. I don't believe this the proper place for such discussions." He paused, before continuing gravely. "There have been many, many things happening since last night. The most recent developments are…disconcerting."
`No,' she thought. `No, no…no…no, not Harry, please, not Harry!' Her hands were shaking as she brought them to cover her mouth, stifling a sob as she imagined the worst. He couldn't be gone. Her last words to him couldn't have been in anger.
Dumbledore seemingly read her thoughts and hurried to reassure her. "Miss Granger," he placed a calming hand on her shoulder before bending down to look her in the eyes. "Harry is alive and safe, I can assure you. However," he paused again, as if unsure how to explain. "As I have said, there have been some complications in his case. Please follow and I will do my best to explain before I take you to see him." He gestured towards the exit once more and turned leaving Hermione to follow dazedly in his wake.
The relief she had felt learning that Harry was alive left her feeling numb. Her mind, the logical portion of her that so often took the foreground, automatically tried to classify the emotional experience as a lesson. Never assume anything. Her father had a saying from when he was in the military. "Assuming makes an ass out of you and me." Her mother had instantly scolded him for the language, but the phrase had stuck in her mind ever since.
She followed the headmaster out Gryffindor Tower, watching as he nodded politely to the Fat Lady and they steadily made their way up the stairs heading towards what she assum…erm…believed to be his office. There were Aurors stationed at various points throughout the school. She had counted at least five patrolling or keeping watch from Gryffindor Tower to the headmaster's office. They approached the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance, when the headmaster paused. Dumbledore turned and gave her an appraising look. He pulled his wand out from its hidden pocket and gave it a few swishes, setting up a silent space in which no one could eavesdrop on their conversation.
"Miss Granger," he began seriously, "before I take you up to my office to see Harry, I must warn you. Voldemort has done something to Harry; exactly what will be painfully obvious once you see him." He stared her in the eyes, willing her to pay close attention. "You must not overreact when you see him. I have spent the morning with several collogues throughout the ministry, the Department of Mysteries, and even called in several favors with some independent researchers." He smiled slightly at her worried expression. "Everything that can be done is being done as we speak. His…situation…is being thoroughly researched as we speak and I am very confident that we will have a solution within the month. Now..." He took a deep breath in preparation. She was not going to like this next bit.
"Please, Miss Granger, you must understand that Harry is very confused right now. He remembers nothing of Hogwarts. He knows nothing of magic. He does not even remember his friends." The look of sadness and understanding he gave her was simply awful. "He will not remember you."
To say that she was shocked would be the understatement of the century. Imagining your best friend being tortured and killed at the hands of one of the most evil men in history was a sickening thought. Before, she had been elated to hear that he was alive and in the castle. Now, having another horrific possibility laid in front of her was almost too much to comprehend. The highs and lows her emotions were being put through was almost like a rollercoaster ride.
"Headmaster," she croaked anxiously. "What, what did he do? What did that monster do to Harry?"
The old wizard looked truly apologetic. "I'm afraid we do not quite know yet, Miss Granger." He paused, lost in thought. "It would appear that Tom, has for whatever reason, turned young Harry into a…well…a younger Harry."
Hermione gaped at him. "Pardon?" she said dimly. "A...what?"
"A younger Harry." Dumbledore smiled slightly at her befuddlement. "Into a toddler, for lack of a better word."
"Is that even possible?" she asked in disbelief.
The headmaster was somewhat amused. "Apparently so." Hermione had nothing to say to that. But as she thought about it, there was every possibility that it such a spell could be done, then Tom Riddle would be the one able to accomplish it. She thought back to their brief skirmish in the Department of Mysteries. There was that death eater that was trapped halfway in a temporal displacement field, who ended up partially regressed into a newborn.
Perhaps that was where Voldemort had picked up on the idea. Surely, he kept track of his death eaters and their fates? If so, then perhaps the Department was already well on the way to a possible cure for Harry. After all, they had magical artifacts that are eerily similar to her friend's current predicament. Fine, that was easy enough to consider, she would find out later just as soon as the news came in. But what were they supposed to do now? She looked up at the headmaster, the reasoning for this visit dawning on her face.
"Ah," he said simply. "And I see you've come to the obvious conclusion. What to do with young Harry." He nodded slowly, his hands gently stroking his long beard. "Yes, it is quite the conundrum. I have learned several things over the course of the morning that I rather wish I could forget, but that is neither here nor there. Harry cannot be taken to his aunt's, especially if he is to receive magical treatment for his ailment. St. Mungo's Spell Damage ward is just not skilled enough to handle a curse of this nature. It will take time and we will need Harry close at hand if we have to take him to any place for examinations. Which, I'm sure, there will be plenty of."
Hermione nodded in agreement. "That seems perfectly reasonable."
"Harry needs to be protected. I cannot stress this urgently enough, for if I am right, then this is merely just a lull in the storm. Tom is both cunning and ruthless. With Harry in this state, he would be mere fodder for Tom should he be able to get his hands on him again. I believe that Tom has ripped the prophecy from Harry's mind." Hermione gasped. "Tom is biding his time and has done this to Harry in order to give himself enough time to decipher the prophecy and decide on a proper course of action. He has, in effect, rendered Harry totally helpless." Dumbledore stared at Hermione, his voice unusually grave. "Once Tom has figured out a plan, he will come to finish what he started. The only reason we still have Harry is because Tom was not quite sure with what to do with him at the time. When he comes back, it will be to finally put and end to Harry."
Hermione felt nauseous. Things were spiraling out of her control and it seemed like the whole war was on the verge of coming to a head with Voldemort and his supports emerging as the victors. Hermione knew of the prophecy, though not its exact contents. Of course, she thought the whole idea of divination utter rubbish. However, the important thing was that Voldemort thought it was real and in the end that was what mattered. He would be coming for Harry eventually. Probably sooner than later. If, by some remote possibility, the prophecy was true, then everything depended on their ability to keep Harry safe until his condition could be reversed.
"What you need from me, sir?"
"Ah, and once again, we cut to the heart of the matter." He smiled gently. "Miss Granger…Hermione, you will be taking care of young Harry while he is here in the castle. I trust no one else but you with his well being, and I know that despite your other responsibilities, you are more than capable of looking after him. For whether he remembers it or not, you are the person he trusts most in this world; one of the few who would protect him with their very lives, though he may sometimes wish it otherwise. Harry needs you more now than ever before, and I know you will rise to the challenge amicably."
Hermione would have been surprised if she hadn't been expecting something along those lines. It was difficult to imagine having to take care of a small child, especially with her being an only child herself, but she had read several books on childrearing and figured it couldn't possibly be that hard. Harry was such a well mannered young man after all. How much trouble could he be?
She wrung her hands together anxiously. "Of course I accept, Professor," exclaimed earnestly. "I will protect and watch out for him just like I always have. Ever since I came here my life has revolved two things. My studies and taking care of Harry Potter, though not always in that order…" she trailed off, lost in thought. "Oh, I can't image what must have happened to him yesterday," she worried fretfully. Her eyes widened in shock. "You!" She pointed an accusing finger at Dumbledore, who was for the moment caught off guard and backpedaled a step. "That was Harry in your arms yesterday! Merlin, there was blood everywhere!" She had a furious look to her eyes and a thundercloud darkened over her head. "You could have said something! I worried myself sick all night long over him, not knowing if he was hurt or killed! What happened to him? Oh, they tortured him didn't they, those wretched people." She stormed up to the professor, a mixture of fury and worry radiating from her. "Take me up to see him! …Sir," she amended quickly.
Dumbledore cleared his throat and nodded quickly, turning back towards the gargoyle. A woman scorned was a frightful thing indeed, but a woman who's loved ones that are threatened is a terrifying sight to behold.
"Kit-kat!" he said and the stone statue leapt aside, allowing the pair admittance to the stairwell. They walked up in silence and soon stood before the door. Dumbledore reached out to the handle, his hand resting on it a moment before looking once again at Hermione.
"Again, Miss Granger, I must remind you to try and keep your emotions in check. Harry is a young boy and wild bursts of emotion will not help him in any way. Please try and control yourself."
Hermione sniffed. "I understand completely professor," she replied in a slightly haughty tone. She had complete control over her emotions and was determined to put on a good front for both Dumbledore and Harry's sake. She would be the very picture of composure.
The headmaster nodded in satisfaction. "Then shall we?" And with that, he gently opened the door and they crossed the threshold.
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Author's Notes: A sort of in between, foreshadowing type of chapter. Not too much happening here, but you do get a small smidgeon of what's to come. Writing is going very slow right now, not because of lack of reviews, for you guys have been great! Actually, I was shocked because FF.net actually out reviewed my peeps on Portkey! WTF is up with that? 10 points to FF.net though for your AWESOME support. Portkey, you're still treating me amazingly and have the most reviews, so you're still my favs. Back to the tardiness of updates, I am completing the whole storyline / outline backwards in order to increase updates after I figure out exactly where this is going. Don't worry, I've ran this by several people and all are very excited at where this is heading. Update coming shortly. Please, this is unbeta'd so keep an eye out for mistakes, point them out, and I'll get `em fixed.
As always, leave me some love!
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