Chapter Ten
INTO THE FOREST
* * *
WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS THE RAPE SCENE MENTIONED IN THE AUTHOR'S NOTE. IT IS NON-GRAPHIC IN NATURE BUT STILL MAY BE TRAUMATIZING TO SOME, ESPECIALLY THOSE HAVING ENDURED A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE. PLEASE DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE ANY DOUBTS ABOUT THE CONTENT OF THIS CHAPTER.
* * *
In light of the double disappearances, everyone felt a little less secure as they went about with their daily routine. Even with Dumbledore's assurances that it was little more than an elaborate prank, many students worried that they would somehow be caught up in it. The Weasley twins were highly offended when someone accused them of being behind it all, and Harry and Ron decided to let his identical older brothers in on what they had overheard. Fred and George agreed that the teachers seemed to know more than Dumbledore was letting on; they also agreed to be on the lookout for anything unusual that might be connected to what was going on in any way.
Ginny also proved herself useful to Harry and Ron. She was Hermione's partner, and she actually went to them trying to figure out what was wrong with her. When Harry and Ron had no answer, she agreed to come back to them if she found anything out. It actually made the boys feel a bit better to know that it wasn't just them that thought Hermione was acting very strangely.
All in all, the next month and a half of school passed without incident. It wasn't until the week before Ron's birthday that things started to heat up again.
* * *
In the last weeks of February, it became common to hear small explosions, eruptions, and yells of pain coming from some part of the dormitory or another. The shocks of the disappearances were wearing off, despite the fact that not a single missing student had been found, and the boys of Gryffindor had found other ways to occupy the time. With a little help from some of the Muggle-born, Fred and George Weasley had begun some adventurous work creating a Muggle radio.
"That sounded painful," said Ron lazily as the fifth explosion of the morning ricocheted from Fred and George's room. Sure enough, a stream of cursing followed the explosion. "What do you think McGonagall is going to say when one of them finally blows himself up?
"Not sure," said Harry, not bothering to look up from his book. He was deeply engrossed in Quidditch Teams of Britain and Ireland for the third time, and small bursts of flame and foul word had ceased to amaze him. "I doubt she'll be able to say anything. They'll probably take the whole castle down if anything goes that wrong."
"True," agreed Ron. He hopped off his bed, where he had been lying for the last thirty minutes, doing nothing. "Do you want to sneak down to the kitchens with me? I'm starving."
"Ron, we've only got an hour and a half till lunch," said Harry, checking his watch. The sensory dial had been stuck on deep red, love, for weeks now. No matter how much tapping or prodding he did, it wouldn't change, and it also wouldn't shut off, so every time he looked at it, Harry involuntarily blushed. "Can't you wait that long?"
Ron shook his head. "I'm hungry now. Come on, will you come with me? Dobby will be happy to see you."
"Er," said Harry, but he closed his book and set it on the edge of his bookshelf. It wobbled precariously but didn't fall. "I guess so. It's not like I have anything better to do."
"An entire weekend without any homework!" said Ron in amazement as they walked out of the door. "I still can't get over our good luck!"
Harry grinned as they walked down through the common room and out of the portrait hole. "I think the teachers took pity on everyone in Arithmancy and just let everyone off so it wouldn't seem like they were playing favorites. I've heard that their test on Monday has six hundred questions!"
"Six?" questioned Ron as they wandered through the corridors toward the entrance to the kitchens. "That's it? The fewest I've heard is seven..."
Ron's words were joking, but he shuddered just the same. Harry couldn't agree with the motion more. "I know certain witches fancy it as their favorite subject," said Harry, thinking of Hermione, "but I couldn't imagine taking a test like that even if I was an expert in the area."
"I couldn't agree with you more," said Ron. They had reached the fruit painting, and he started to tickle the pair before remembering that the apple was now the key to entering the kitchens. The several hundred house-elves employed by Hogwarts looked up courteously to see who was now in their midst. Immediately, Dobby saw Harry and Ron and raced happily towards them.
"It is Harry Potter and friend! Harry Potter's friend is also great wizard!" cried Dobby, enthusiastically dragging the boys into the kitchen. "What is you liking? Dobby is wanting to get you whatever you like, sirs!"
"Er, do you have any cakes or cookies, Dobby?" asked Ron. He and Harry shared a look. They were both eyeing the sock that had replaced Dobby's tea cozy as a hat.
"Oh yes, we has many cakes and cookies, Harry Potter's friend!" called Dobby, still excited. He joined a handful of other house-elves scurrying around to meet their request. "I is very happy to see you again, Harry Potter! I was wanting to know when you would come to the kitchens! It has been long time since I've see you!"
Dobby smiled at them eagerly as he presented them with a tray filled with every time of cookie and sweet imaginable. "Me and Winky, we is very good friends now! I has convinced other house-elves to be free! But we is all very happy still to work for Mr. Dumbledore! He is very good wizard, too! I am learning lots here. Is there other things I can get you?"
"Just something to drink, please," said Harry politely. "Thank you, Dobby. Thank you all, too," he added, gesturing to the other house-elves. They bowed happily.
"Is milk okay, sirs?" said a rather plump house-elf with a little apron tied on top of her Hogwarts toga.
"That would be great," said Ron. The boys waved their good-byes and scrambled out of the kitchen.
"Let's go in the back way, through the prefect common room," suggested Harry, eyeing the tray Ron was carrying. Ron hadn't just eyed the food; he had already seized a chocolate chip cookie and was munching away. "McGonagall has a habit of checking in on the common room every so often now. Great idea, by the way."
Ron said something unintelligible through the cookie he had just shoved in his mouth, but he swallowed and tried again. "It was even nice to see Dobby again," he repeated.
"I like the house-elves," said Harry. "They all seem happy here."
"They don't even need Hermione's S.P.E.W. campaign!" said Ron with a laugh as he balanced the tray on one hand, wiping the other off on the side of his robe. Realizing what he'd said, he nearly stopped in the middle of the hallway.
"Actually, I wouldn't even mind S.P.E.W. if Hermione would just speak to us again," said Harry sadly. "She acts like we don't even exist anymore!"
"I know," said Ron, shaking his head. "I couldn't believe her the other day in Potions. She would barely look at us! She just quietly told us the directions and got to work!"
"It's not the same without her around," said Harry softly. He knew that Ron missed Hermione's company, but he had a feeling he missed her more. He wasn't about to let on just how much he missed her, however. They were almost up the narrow, spiral staircase that led to the back entrance of the prefect common room. Harry, whose hands weren't as full as Ron's, tapped out a pattern on the stones to enter.
"What kind do you think that is?" questioned Harry, pointing to a row of odd-shaped, lumpy cookies. They had an odd coloring to them. Ron eyed the cookies as he set them down on the table. He picked one up and popped it in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. His nose wrinkled up.
"Blech!" exclaimed Ron, swallowing hard. "I think it's some kind of butterscotch-peanut butter-chocolate creation. All I know is that I don't like that-"
"Do you mind?"
Harry and Ron looked up, unaware that someone was already in the room. Hermione had floated one of the cozy armchairs and it's side table to the other side of the room. Her Arithmancy book lay open, and several scrolls of notes had been unrolled. She did not look happy.
"I'm sorry, Hermione," said Harry quickly. "We didn't realize you were-"
"That," said Hermione sharply, "was obvious. It's impossible to find a quiet area to study in this place! I simply can't imagine how I'm going to be able to prepare for the O.W.L.S.!"
"We'll be quiet," said Ron. "I promise."
"Never mind," said Hermione. She was already picking up her things. "I'll find another place."
Harry and Ron shared a look as she stormed out of room.
"You know," said Ron at last, "that's the first time she's talked to us outside of class in over a month."
"Oh, and what a talk it was," added Harry sarcastically. He couldn't help but worry, though, even as Hermione acted so harsh towards them. "I don't understand it. What happened to the Hermione that we know?"
"I don't know," said Ron, the tray of sweets completely forgotten, "but I want her back."
* * *
Having Hermione snap at them didn't put Harry and Ron in the best of moods. They weren't really mad at her, not so much as they were worried, but it still dampened their spirits. Both looked fairly glum as they made the trek down to the Great Hall for lunch. They had no sooner entered the Great Hall than something came flying at Ron. That something had a mane of curly red hair and flung itself right into Ron's arms. It was Anna.
"Anna!" exclaimed Ron, wrapping his arms around her. "What's wrong?"
"It's-it's happened again," she sobbed. "J-J-Jo-John's-"
"Shh," said Ron soothingly, shooting a helpless look in Harry's directions. Both Harry and Ron looked equally perplex. "Calm down and tell me what's happened, okay?"
Anna finally pulled back, tears still streaming down her cheeks. "There's been another disappearance," she whimpered. "It was-" She broke off again, her arms around Ron's neck once more.
"John?" said Ron slowly, finally able to distinguish the name from her earlier sobs. Anna nodded miserably, and Ron patted her back gently. "I'm so sorry, Anna..."
"SILENCIO!"
This time, it was Professor McGonagall that had taken charge of the situation. Dumbledore was nowhere in sight. She stood in the middle of the room, her wand still poised in the air.
"Everyone needs to stay calm," she said slowly, "so please sit down at your house table. Dumbledore will be here in just a moment."
With another wave, noise was restored to the room. Everyone filtered towards his or her table except for Anna, who Ron wasn't about to let out of his sight. She seemed to have calmed down during the walk to the Gryffindor table.
"He and his friends had all gone to the library," said Anna. "John was doing a special independent study for Professor Lupin's class and had a pass to the restricted section. He was there one minute, and the next he was gone! I guess all the books had been thrown around, and there was more of that hideous, choking smoke."
"Was there a message?" Harry couldn't help but ask.
Anna nodded before resting her head against Ron's shoulder again. She looked absolutely forlorn. "This is your last warning," she whispered.
* * *
Unlike the first four missing students, John Clemens was fairly well known at Hogwarts. Tall, with auburn hair and brown eyes and a boyish smile, a lot of the older girls would admit to having crushes on him or, at the very least, finding him cute. He helped manage the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, as a practice injury during his fourth year had prevented him from being able to play, and a lot of the younger students knew him through Anna. The news of his disappearance brought more disorder than the other four combined.
It was also the first disappearance to really hit home for either Harry or Ron. While the first person to go missing, Mandy Brocklehurst, had been in their year, they hadn't ever had any classes with her, and they only vaguely knew Dennis Creevley through his brother, who had followed Harry around during their second year. Anna, obviously, took John's disappearance especially hard, and Harry and Ron both spent a lot of their extra time with her. Still, they were trying, as was everyone else, to go about their normal routines in spite of everything that had happened.
"Do you understand problem seventeen?" said Ron, sounding very frustrated.
The teachers were getting just as sick of the new rules and regulations as the students, and they weren't enforcing them as stringently, so Harry and Ron had spent the afternoon in the courtyard with Anna. Now that dinner was over, however, they had retreated to their room to get their homework done.
"Are you working on Professor Lupin's assignment, too?" asked Harry with a sigh. He ran his hand through his hair. He and Ron hadn't been getting as good of marks lately without Hermione to force them to study and check their work.
"It's all that I have left," said Ron. Harry caught his eyes dart between his assignment and the set of Gobstones Harry had given him for his birthday a week and a half before. "I'm quite tempted not to do it..."
"Don't," said Harry, even though the idea sounded very tempting to him, too. "Professor Lupin said there wouldn't be that many points possible this term. I have a feeling we're not going to be able to afford loosing any of them."
"You didn't have to remind me," moaned Ron, dropping his head to his desk. "I still can't get the hang of the Belwit Curse stuff! It's hard to practice magic that nearly killed you, I swear."
"You'll make out," assured Harry. "I think it's really just asking us to describe the different levels of it and how severe they are."
"Huh?"
"Question seventeen," said Harry. "You said you were having trouble with it."
"I was," said Ron, "but now that you said that, I think I get it." He finished scribbling an answer. "I'm done now... do you want to check answers?"
Harry nodded, hopping out of his chair and over to Ron's desk. They spent the next few minutes reading each other's work, rephrasing some answers and changing others entirely.
"I can't believe how much work we've had to do lately," grumbled Ron as he put his homework and books into his book bag. "I want to know how we're supposed to start studying for our O.W.L.S. with so much to do already!"
"Ron Weasley?" said Harry jokingly. "Study for O.W.L.S.? Did I just hear that right? You do realize that they're still two months away, right?"
Ron threw up his hands. "Hey, our first year, we started studying for final exams ten weeks in advance!"
"Or at least," said Harry with a sad smile, "Hermione wanted us too."
"Did you see her today in Potions?" asked Ron.
"Of course I did," said Harry. "She does sit next to me."
Ron shook his head. "That's not what I meant. Did you see how she looked? She's got these dark circles under her eyes-looks like she hasn't slept in weeks."
"Yeah, I kind of picked up on that," said Harry. "Haven't you seen her in the common room lately? She's always the last one to leave. I'm pretty sure I'm right in saying she's spending every waking minute studying."
"She'll be the first person to have `studying' as her cause of death. It'll be so rare that even her tombstone will talk about it. It'll even rhyme, I bet: `Here lies Hermione Granger, who in studying found no danger. Then one day, she passed away, atop her Arithmancy charts-the price she paid for having smarts!'" said Ron, taking a short bow for his "poetry" and looking quite pleased with himself.
"That's kind of sick, Ron," said Harry, but he couldn't help but laugh. He shook it off quickly; he didn't even want to think about Hermione dying.
"I know," said Ron, "but the truth hurts sometime. I should write that down for future use. I might not remember it in when I'm busy grieving for our fallen friend. Or former friend. Or person that refuses to even acknowledge we exist. Take your pick..."
* * *
"How many of you attended a certain `Dueling Club' three years ago?" questioned Lupin at the start of class the next day. Over half the hands in the room went up, and he chuckled. "I've heard-er, a little bit about how that went from Professor Snape. As part of the curriculum this year, I have been asked to teach you how to duel. However, before I start, I want to ask you to throw out anything that might still be in your little minds about that club."
Ron leaned back in his chair to give Harry a thumbs-up behind Hermione. Unfortunately, he leaned back a bit too far and nearly toppled his chair over. His cheeks were burning to about the color of his hair when he righted his chair and muttered his apologies to Lupin. Even the professor was laughing, but Hermione gave Ron a very sharp, disapproving look.
"Thanks for the laugh, Mr. Weasley," said Lupin, still chuckling. "I have a few things to tell you, and then we'll pair up. According to your Defense Against the Dark Arts book, a proper duel starts with an accepted bow of the head, wands posed, ready for use. Personally, I don't care. If you ever find yourself in the situation that you would have to duel, I doubt you'd be too worried about `proper.'"
Lupin went on to explain about the common spells used in duels and disarming charms. He had launched into a speech about how to anticipate an opponent's next move when Harry saw Ron lean back again out of the corner of his eye. He tossed Harry a note.
"Finally, something I might be able to do!" wrote Ron. "Cross your fingers that he'll pair the two of us up. I'm afraid Hermione will kill me if we're partners. She knows more spells than anyone-and did you see that look she gave me?"
Harry didn't write back to Ron, but he gave him a smile and a nod. He knew what look Ron was talking about. Hermione had looked ready to kill. A few minutes later, Lupin stopped talking and began to walk down the aisle between desks.
"Okay, Thomas and Longbottom, Brown and Perks, Weasley and Finnigan..." said Lupin, pointing to each student as he called their names. Harry noticed Seamus staring at Ron uncertainly, and he remembered Ron nearly killing him with his taped-together wand in Lockhart's dueling club. "...Who's left? Oh, Potter and Granger. Is that everyone?"
With a wave of his wand and a few well chosen words, Lupin moved all the desks against the walls of the room. Everyone was finding their partner, and he began pointing students in different directions, telling them where to stand. It was the first time in a few weeks that Hermione and Harry had been in proximity of each other, and Hermione was giving him an unreadable look.
"Okay," said Lupin with a wave of his hand. "Keeping in mind what I just told you, and that you'll be in trouble if you kill anyone, practice some dueling on the count of three-one... two... three!"
"Hittiatimus!"
Hermione was faster than Harry. He immediately felt like something had socked him in the stomach, and he stumbled back a few feet. He tightened his wand and pointed it in Hermione's direction. "Impedimenta!"
Hermione's motion seemed to slow as she raised her wand again, and she glared at him. Harry looked back helplessly. He didn't really want to hurt her, but he couldn't just stand there and let her attack him. The exchange of spells continued for a full minute, and before he knew it, Harry's feet were dancing around uncontrollably, his ears were starting to resemble those of an elf, his wand arm felt like it had sharp pins brutally prodding it, and he'd stumbled backwards three different times.
"Disarm!" cried Lupin suddenly.
"Expelliarmus!" cried Harry, but Hermione must have said it at the exact same moment. His wand flew out of his hand with a blinding flash of light and a long piece of wood nearly impaled him. However, instead of just flying backwards, he toppled forward before falling back and hitting his head against a desk. Hermione had also been propelled forward, and she landed on a heap on top of him.
"Oh dear," muttered Lupin as the smoke cleared and he surveyed the scene around him. "I told Dumbledore this wouldn't be the best of ideas."
Harry's hand flew up to the back of his head, which he touched gingerly. He was relieved to pull his fingers back without any blood. Around the room, all the other groups were in similar states of disarray. Ron was rolling with laughter in the open space in front of him. Neville was apologizing profusely to Dean, who was clutching certain body parts with a look of pain on his face while cursing under his breath. Lavender had been stupefied, and Sally-Ann Perks was belching up slugs. A bevy of mice was running loose across the floor. Harry was so taken by the scene before him that he didn't notice Hermione was yet to move off him.
"Hermione!" he cried, realizing she too had conked her head on one of the desks. He managed to grab his wand and mutter one of the healing charms they had just learned in Professor Flitwick's class, and then he hopefully called, "Ennervate!"
Much to his relief, Hermione came too, muttering something unintelligible. She was also touching her head gingerly, and she didn't seem to realize whose arms were around her. Her head dropped against his shoulder. Lupin was dashing around, muttering spells and charms and counter curses, trying to undo everything that had been inflicted upon his students.
"Are you all right?" asked Harry.
"I'm all right," muttered Hermione, but she didn't sound it. Her eyes closed again.
"Is she all right?" Harry looked up to see Ron standing over them.
"I don't know," said Harry as Ron bent down to the two of them. "We both said the disarming spell at the same time, and something happened. I think she hit her head against the desk."
"What's wrong?" said Lupin suddenly.
"She hit her head, Professor," said Ron quickly. A look of worry crossed Lupin's face, but his spell managed to revive Hermione. She blinked a few times, looking utterly confused as to where she was and what happened.
"I'll be back," said Lupin. "I need to revive Miss Brown and offer some relief to Mr. Thomas."
"Harry," murmured Hermione. She was still, essentially, on top of him, and Harry and Ron shared a look.
"Are you okay now, `Mione?" asked Harry carefully.
"Just fine," she said shakily, and she slowly pulled back from him. It was as if she had forgotten that she was no longer associating herself with them.
"Hermione?" questioned Ron.
"Where's my wand?" said Hermione absently.
"It's right over there," said Harry, gesturing. He scrambled to his feet, and she started to stand. She didn't seem fully recovered yet, and she would have fallen down if Harry hadn't caught her. He didn't let go this time.
Suddenly, Hermione must have realized who was holding her. She broke away from Harry and stumbled. This time it was Ron that grabbed her shoulder to steady her.
"I'm fine!" exclaimed Hermione. "Stop it! I don't need your help!"
"Hermione, you're stumbling all over the place," said Harry, trying to remain calm.
Hermione had scuttled over to her wand and picked it up again. The rest of the class was quieting, as Lupin had finished fixing the effects of the duel. When she looked back at Harry and Ron, she looked dangerously close to tears.
"Stop it, Harry," she said softly. "Please don't say anything else. It already hurts more than enough."
* * *
Lupin had to dismiss half the class to the hospital wing, and he let everyone else go at the same time. Hermione rushed on ahead, obviously avoiding Ron and Harry once more. The boys were more confused with her behavior than ever. As they walked out the door themselves, Lupin continued to mumble.
"Shouldn't have to teach this-going to end up killing each other-this'll be the end," he was muttering as he shut the door behind him.
"Poor guy," said Ron sympathetically, looking back over his shoulder. "I'd hate to be responsible for all that."
"Dumbledore wanted him to teach it," said Harry with a shrug. "There must have been a reason."
"Slow down, Harry!" called Ron. "What's your hurry?"
"I'm going to find Hermione," said Harry calmly. "I'm sick of this. I'm going to figure out once and for all what's bothering her. I miss her, and I want her back. Okay?"
"Okay," said Ron, quickening his pace. "I'm coming, too."
"Good," said Harry, taking the stairs up from the dungeon two and three at a time. "Where do you think she'll be?"
"Prefect common room?" guessed Ron, and Harry nodded. They lumbered up the spiral staircase leading into the back entrance of the common room. Ron got there first and started taping in the password on the bricks. Nothing happened.
"Am I not doing it right?" said Ron. After putting in the code three times with no success, he was scratching his head and staring at the wall.
"I dunno," said Harry. Ron stepped aside to give Harry a chance. "You might have been."
Harry tried it several times, too. He didn't have any luck either. Finally, on the seventh try, Ron managed to get a response from the wall. The stones were shifting to form a doorway. The two boys stepped in, Harry first, and then Ron. They were both taken aback with what they saw.
The furniture in the small but decorative room had been toppled over. Several candles had been overturned on the carpet, creating messes of wax. There was a thick, pungent smell in the room, and it was hard to see. Harry nearly tripped over something in the gloom.
"What is that?" he muttered. Ron bent down to examine the object.
"It's Hermione's book bag," he said quietly. As he stood up again, Harry stepped backwards and nearly knocked him over.
"Ron, look," whispered Harry. A terrifying message loomed in gray smoke before them.
"If you would have just listened," read Ron, "this one wouldn't have to die."
* * *
"Harry," said Professor McGonagall softly, tapping his shoulder, "you really should get something to eat, dear."
"I'll get him to," said Ron quietly. Professor McGonagall looked unsure, but she nodded and walked back to the staff table. Ron waved his hand in front of Harry's eyes. "Come on, Harry, I know you're in shock, but you have snap out of it. Sitting around staring off into space isn't going to help anything."
Harry shook his head suddenly, blinking several times. He looked as if he'd just woken up from a deep sleep, and he reached absently across the table for a dinner roll. "I know," he said. "I'm fine."
Ron nodded, and he didn't say anything. He knew Harry wasn't fine. He wasn't exactly what you'd call fine, either. He'd manage to get over the shock of what they'd seen in the prefect room, but Harry hadn't yet. Ron looked silently down to his own plate. There wasn't a single person in the Great Hall that didn't know what had been found in the Gryffindor Tower, and the hall was eerily quiet. Still, there was a big difference from hearing about it and seeing it yourself.
Harry and Ron had gone straight to Professor McGonagall with what had happened. She was actually still teaching class, but she had abandoned it upon hearing their news. It had taken a full hour to find the rest of the Gryffindor prefects to confirm that it was Hermione, indeed, who had disappeared. Harry and Ron had been allowed back in the room as several of the teachers searched it for clues, and it hadn't done anything to calm their nerves. Harry had made the worst discovery of all-a trail of blood leading from one corner of the room to the other-and he'd gone practically catatonic.
"She'll be okay, Harry," said Ron, trying to convince himself as well. "Hermione's gotten through a lot this year already. I think she can pull through this time, too."
"Whatever you say," said Harry, just as absently. He fiddled with the roll a few times before putting it back down on his plate. Ron looked at him helplessly. There was little else for him to say; he didn't honestly see how Hermione could be okay after the grisly condition of the prefect common room.
"Good evening, everyone."
The low, grave voice almost wasn't recognizable. No one could every remember Dumbledore taking such a tone. A hush fell over the Great Hall as the all looked in the direction of the headmaster.
"Thank you," said Dumbledore. "A rather unfortunate discovery was made just a few hours ago. A sixth, and hopefully last, student has vanished from Hogwarts-Hermione Granger. Just as in the other disappearances, a taunting message was left in the room from which she disappeared. However, unlike the last five messages, the threat of death signals this is no longer a simple prank. We are treating this with the most serious of regard. It is for that reason a time limit has been imposed by the board of governors. If the six missing students are not in the next forty-eight hours, then it will be the end for Hogwarts. I'm sorry."
* * *
"We can't just sit here and let this happen," declared Ron later that evening. He and Harry had been sitting in their room, in silence, since dinner. The hallway outside had been eerily quiet at first, too, but, at Professor McGonagall's insistence, the boys had resumed their usual activities. She had then come into Harry and Ron's room with assurances that everything was being done to find Hermione, and she had confidence she would be found unharmed. It had been a thinly veiled attempt to cheer them up, and both Harry and Ron had recognized it as one. Now, it seemed as if everything was going back to normal, even with the threat of a dead student and the closing of the school.
A small explosion, the second for the night, burst out from down the hall before Harry had a chance to answer. He finally looked at Ron.
"They all knew Hermione, too," said Harry, almost angrily. "How can they just go back to their daily routines knowing what's going on?"
"We've been doing it all along," reminded Ron. "From the beginning, we've been ignoring the fact that something was very wrong. A student would disappear, and we would just keep going up like nothing had happened. It's no surprise that the board of governors are a bit worried."
"But what are they going to do?" questioned Harry. "If no one's found them by the end of the week, what's going to happen? Is Hogwarts just going to close and no mention be made of those that must still be somewhere on the grounds?"
Ron didn't have an answer for him. He lie back against the pillow on his bed and sat in silence for a few more minutes.
"Do you think there's anything we can do?" said Ron finally.
"To help find Hermione? I don't know," responded Harry. "I don't even know where you could begin looking. I'm sure the teachers have already checked out all of the obvious places."
"Hogwarts doesn't have that large of grounds," said Ron suddenly. "Don't you think they would still have to be on the school grounds? You saw what happened to Malfoy when he merely stepped over the line. I don't know how you'd get past that, especially if you had someone with you."
"Malfoy's a decent wizard. You could even call him good," said Harry, "but he's not what you'd call great. He's just ordinary. I might have thought he was behind some of it at first, but now I'm positive that he's not involved."
Ron nodded. "Then I guess the question we should be asking is `Who is?'"
"If we knew that," said Harry grimly, "we wouldn't be having this conversation. He would have been stopped a long time ago."
"True," said Ron, scratching his chin. He looked over at Harry. His friend had lapsed back into his earlier state. He was looking toward the window, an almost far-off appearance on his face. Ron didn't say anything for a long time.
"There's no use in this," said Harry finally. He hopped off his bed and over to his wardrobe. "I'm going to go to bed. Maybe I'll be able to think a bit more clearly after a good night's sleep."
"Good idea," said Ron. Harry looked determined, but Ron could see behind the mask. It was hard to keep faith when hope had already been lost.
* * *
Harry had a very unusual dream that night.
He found himself wandering through a beautiful forest on a warm summer day. At first, he didn't recognize where he was, but as his dream went on, he became convinced he was lost in the Forbidden Forest. The trees began to look more hostile, and the entire area began to lose its beauty. The warmth had faded completely, replaced by the bitter cold of winter. Snow began to swirl around, and ice froze the trees into threatening sculptures.
Harry knew he was wandering, but he didn't know for what. He began to realize that he wasn't dressed in his school robes anymore; instead, he was wearing a fine set of black robes that would not have been out of place at a ball or a wedding. However, as the wind howled and snow flew in every direction, the fine robes began to fade, and the fabric grew tattered and torn.
It was then that he heard it. Tortured screams began ringing out in time with the wind. Harry began running, unsure of whether to go in the direction of the cries or away. Finally, he moved toward them, almost as if some power was pushing him in that direction. He reached a clearing of trees; twelve great oaks formed a magnificent, perfect circle. However, something had stained the serene setting. The pure white snow had been stained with patches of a sinister red, and the screams grew louder. Someone was pleading.
The last thing Harry remembered seeing before he woke up and the first thing that came to mind when he did were the same. He looked around the room, startled. Finally, he reached for his glasses on the bedside table. In the process, he nearly knocked his watch to the floor. He held it up to the moonlight.
It was exactly midnight, and the center dial still glowed a deep red. It was doing something unusual, though. A zero had replaced the twelve on the center dial, and the inner hand kept flicking between it and one.
* * *
Snow was swirling all around with the bitter winter wind in the darkness, and she was starting to go numb. She couldn't ever remembering being this cold in her life, but she was actually grateful for the numbing sensation spreading through her body. It was easing the pain.
Hermione tried to open her eyes, but it was impossible. Something was preventing her from escaping the darkness. She tried to pick herself up, but that too was impossible. She'd never felt so weak, either. In the distance, she could hear someone yelling.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid," he was muttering. Hermione began to wish she had the energy to cover her ears. She recognized that voice, but she couldn't put her finger on whose it was. Nevertheless, she didn't want to hear it. She felt something dig into her side.
"What? Not going to fight back?"
Hermione finally managed to open her eyes, but the image before her wasn't clear. Somewhere in the back of her mind she began to wonder if she was in sudden need of glasses. Her head was swimming.
"It's a shame I had to take you," said the voice again. "I almost liked you for awhile there. Don't worry, I'll make it fast for you."
Something hit the side of her head, and Hermione felt the scene before her eyes growing fuzzier and fuzzier, until she was in darkness once more. She was finally alone, and she was thankful. It was hard to think clearly.
She remembered heading back to Gryffindor after Professor Lupin's class. She remembered the way her head had hurt, but she couldn't remember why. She had gone up to the prefect common room to start her homework, but someone had already been there. She tried to leave, but he was too fast. Who had been there? Hermione couldn't remember. She could, however, remember him taking her wand out of her robes, tossing it off to the side. She'd tried to fight back, and he'd hit her so hard in the face that her mouth had started to bleed. Was her jaw broken?
"Thought I had left you, no?" The voice was back, and it was followed by a sinister laugh. "Soon enough. The next time I leave you, I leave you to die."
Hermione's mind began to clear. It was oddly quiet for a few minutes, with the exception of light footsteps crunching in the snow. She began to think that the voice and its owner were going to leave, but she was wrong. Her skirt was not where it was supposed to be, her shirt. Hermione squeezed her eyes tightly shut. In the back of her mind, she knew what was being done to her, but she couldn't bear to think about it. The pain and sick feeling were enough of a reminder.
"How did you like that, Mudblood? How did that feel?" The voice was whispering now, a low, evil whisper. He began crunching around in the snow. Hermione mustered the last of her strength.
"Please don't hurt me anymore," she whimpered, blood still in her mouth. Talking was painful. "Please stop."
The crunching stopped. "You are not supposed to be conscious! Stupid girl!"
Speaking had been a bad idea, Hermione realized later. She lay peacefully in the snow for a few minutes, and then the calm shattered. There was more pain this time, and it was worse than before. Try as she might, Hermione was loosing the battle with perception.
A few thoughts were still swimming through her head: her family, Hogwarts, Ron, and finally, Harry. Slowly, even those faded away, leaving nothing. Darkness.
* * *
"Ron!" whispered Harry frantically. He knew he was letting his dream affect him more than he should, but he also couldn't shake the feeling that it left him with. He tried again. "Ron!"
"Wh-Wha?" muttered Ron sleepily, and he yawned. Finally, he looked over to Harry. "What's going on? It's the middle of the night!"
Harry immediately felt bad for waking his friend. Suddenly, his dream seemed to make even less sense. Nevertheless, he had to tell Ron now that he was awake. "I had a weird dream."
"Yeah?" said Ron. He looked over to Harry with a little interest, but the look on his face still warned that this better be important.
Harry quickly explained his dream. The farther into it he got, the more bewildered Ron looked. When he finished, his friend was looking at him like he was crazy.
"Okay, Harry, it's weird," agreed Ron, "but I'm starting to worry about you a little."
"No, Ron, you don't understand. I-" said Harry. He was about to try and explain himself when everything came together in his mind. He rushed on. "I'm not crazy, even though you think I am. I was thinking about Hermione when I woke up. She's the last thing I saw in the dream-"
"Harry," interrupted Ron, "it's probably just a weird coincidence. I'm scared for her, too, but there's no use of getting your hopes up. Listen-"
"No, you listen," said Harry angrily. "You keep claiming that you're worried about Hermione too. You keep saying that you're scared too. But you won't even listen to me! Don't get my hopes up? What am I supposed to do? Just wait for someone else to find her, dead? She's your friend, too, Ron!"
There was silence, but Harry didn't regret his outburst. He was almost sure they'd find Hermione at the setting of the dream, but he knew he couldn't do anything about it alone. He needed Ron's help, now more than ever.
"What do you think you know?" said Ron suddenly. "Do you think she's there?"
"I'm sure of it," said Harry gratefully. "I know it sounds completely crazy. If it doesn't work out, I'll go off to an institution, willingly, but we can't just not try."
"We have to tell someone," said Ron. "The barrier around Hogwarts, I'm sure it blocks off the Forbidden Forest. Without a teacher or Dumbledore or something, we don't stand a chance against that thing."
Harry nodded, hoping Ron could see him in the dark. He heard a creak from Ron's side of the room, and he realized that his friend had gotten out of bed.
"What are you doing?" said Harry.
"This can't wait," said Ron. "You're right. If Hermione's friends won't help her, she doesn't have a chance. We're going to find Professor McGonagall."
* * *
"This is ludicrous," said Professor McGonagall angrily. She was poking her head out of her suite at the top of the Gryffindor Tower, looking to Harry and Ron. "Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, it's the middle of the night!"
"So?" said Ron just as angrily. "If Harry's dream is right, then we have to find Hermione as soon as possible."
"Mr. Weasley," said the old professor grumpily, but her tone softened. "Boys, I know you're grieving for your friend, but you need to face reality. Hagrid has already searched every inch of the forest. If Miss Granger or any of the other missing students for that matter was lost within the depths of the forest, Hagrid would have already found them."
"Professor McGonagall," pleaded Harry, "please listen to us. What can it hurt? If I'm wrong, I'm wrong, but if I'm right, we might be able to find Hermione before it's too late."
"I'm sorry," said McGonagall sternly. "There's nothing more we can do. It's been nearly four months since Mandy was taken. Whoever responsible for these disappearances doesn't want them to be found, and there's nothing we can do to change that. Good night, boys."
Her head went back into her room, and the door closed firmly behind her. Harry and Ron shared a frustrated look. They walked back down to their own room in silence. Once Harry had shut the door behind him, it was he that had to calm down Ron this time. Harry cringed as Ron nearly tripped over one of his schoolbooks that was lying on the floor, responding by throwing it against the wall.
"This isn't right!" exclaimed Ron. "You think they'd want to find her! No! The way they're acting about this, you'd think they wanted them all dead and Hogwarts shut down!"
"Ron!" said Harry. "Calm down! There's nothing else we can do right now!"
"What? Now you're going to give up, too? Just great!"
"I'm not giving up on Hermione," said Harry angrily. "We'll go to Hagrid first thing tomorrow morning. If anyone here will listen to us, it's him. Besides, he knows the forest better than anyone. He'll be able to find the circle of trees for us."
Ron took a deep breath, dropping onto his bed. "Okay," he said. "Sorry about that. What you said earlier really got to me. Hermione might not want to have anything to do with us at the moment, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't help her."
Harry nodded. He sat down on his own bed, staring out the window. It had started to snow-again.
"Second week of March," muttered Ron. "You'd think it'd start looking like spring about now, but that's hard when everything's still covered in two feet of snow like it's January."
Harry didn't respond. Not even the late snow could push out his worries about Hermione.
* * *
Someone was talking to her. Hermione struggled to pay attention to the words being spoken to her as she opened her eyes. It was so dark that she couldn't even tell there was someone standing by her.
"I thought you'd be here," he said grimly. It was too much. Hermione's eyes fluttered shut again. Everything hurt so much, and it was so cold, but it didn't matter anymore. She accepted the fact that this was the end.
"Come on, you can't stay," said the voice again. Hermione opened her eyes again, but everything was still blurred. The voice was vaguely familiar, but the concerned tone didn't make sense. She tried to open her mouth, but her jaw seemed to be locked.
"Can you even hear me, Granger? I'm not going to hurt you. Just trust me this once," said the voice. Hermione realized she was being helped to her feet. "Ugh, you weigh a ton."
She was half carried, half dragged, for what seemed like miles. In reality, it was probably only a few hundred feet. Before she realized what was happening, Hermione was lying on the ground again. It felt warmer here.
"I know you're still hurt, but there's not much else I can do for you. At least you won't freeze to death, here," said the voice one more time. "Good luck, Granger."
Hermione's thoughts were swimming again before the stranger had even started walking away. As the crunching footsteps moved farther away, she slipped back into darkness.
* * *
Harry and Ron arrived in the Great Hall the next morning to hear the news that classes had been canceled; obviously, the teachers had a little more on their minds this morning than most. Harry and Ron shared a look. Not having classes would make it easier to head out to Hagrid's cabin and tell him about Harry's dream.
Or so they thought. Professor McGonagall kept her eyes on them throughout the meal; it was as if she anticipated them sneaking off at any moment. As soon as the plates had been cleared and the students were waiting to be dismissed, she headed down the aisle to the center of the Gryffindor table.
"May I have a word?" asked Professor McGonagall, gesturing to Harry and Ron. "Professor Lupin is in need of some help today, and I volunteered the two of you. He was delighted with my suggestion, so I would advise you to go directly to his room after breakfast. It would be in your best interest to stay out of trouble." She looked at the pointedly, walking away before either of them got to speak.
"This is so unfair!" muttered Harry angrily.
"The way she's acting," added Ron, "you'd think she wants to see Hermione die."
Harry's stomach did a flip-flop. "Don't say that," he said weakly. "We will find her, and she won't be dead. We should just go help Lupin, and we'll head outside right after."
"It could be too-" started Ron, but Harry shot him a look. He gulped. "You're right. It's the only thing we can do."
* * *
The two boys did as they were told and headed straight to Lupin's classroom after breakfast. The professor was already there, hunched over a thick pile of books and taking notes hastily on a scroll.
"Harry! Ron!" he exclaimed as they walked into the room. "Thank you so much for coming down to help. I told McGonagall that I would be fine working alone, but she insisted the two of you could use the distraction."
"I guess," said Harry half-heartedly. At least one person in this school seemed to understand how he and Ron were feeling at the moment.
"What are we helping with?" asked Ron.
Lupin gestured to a thick stack of books. "These," he said, "aren't really books. They're transcripts of hearings-every single Death Eater ever put on trial. I'm going through and writing down every name mentioned in the trials, even those testifying against the Death Eaters. It's hard to explain what I'm using them for, but I need names of possible suspects."
Harry and Ron exchanged a look. It didn't seem like the kind of urgent work Professor McGonagall made it out to be. Lupin caught them, and he chuckled.
"I know, it seems dull, but it's actually very important. I must get it done by afternoon, so I can get to work on the charms," said Lupin. "I-er, well, tonight's a full moon. By the time I could work on this again, it would be too late. Hogwarts could be closed."
"What is it that you need the names for, anyway?" asked Harry. He and Ron were about half an hour into the task. A few glances at Ron told him that neither of the two was really into it, but they kept working anyway. Their minds were somewhere else.
Lupin looked around like he expected someone to enter the room. He lowered his voice. "I'm sure you know that they found Hermione's wand in the common room last night," he said. "As it turns out, it was used to create the smoke and make a mess of things. There's a series of charms I can perform to find out who, besides Hermione, has had their hands on it. I need names though, and Professor Snape thought this would be the best way place to start."
"Will it be easier to find `Mione or something if you know who took her?" Ron wanted to know.
"In theory, probably not," said Lupin sadly. "It's the only thing we could think to do, though. At least we'd be able to pin it on someone..."
He said some other things, but Harry wasn't paying attention. It felt like he was dreaming again. He was in the Forbidden Forest once more, and the screams kept getting louder.
"Harry!" said Ron, and he looked around, startled. Both Ron and Lupin were looking at him with concern. Harry figured he must have done something especially odd. He tried to shake it off.
"What?" said Harry.
"Nothing," said Ron hastily. "You just looked a bit pale." He seemed to understand what had happened. "You okay?"
"Yeah, just fine," said Harry. He would be fine if it wasn't for the feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Can I go get a drink of water?"
"Of course you can," said Lupin, looking perplexed. He kept glancing between Harry and Ron, but he finally shook his head and looked back down to his work. Harry stood up quickly and barely noticed the chink of something hitting the floor.
"What's that?" demanded Lupin suddenly. His eyes were glued to a spot on the floor. Harry looked down, also, as did Ron. It was the necklace he had given to Hermione. He'd never bothered to take it out of his pocket once she'd given it back. Harry bent down and picked it up.
"This?" questioned Harry. "It's just a necklace-"
"May I please see it?" said Lupin reaching out his hand. Harry gave Ron an uncertain glance as he dropped it into Lupin's hand. Ron seemed to realize its origins as Lupin flipped it over and over in his hand, inspecting it. "Where on earth did you get this?"
"I made it," said Harry nervously, "in Transfigurations. We were practicing creating objects with detail. I don't know. I just made-"
Lupin held up his hand. "I understand. Do you have any idea what this is, Harry?"
"Er," said Harry, "is it something bad?"
"No!" Lupin shook his head fervently. "No, it's far from it. Harry, this is a protecao."
Harry and Ron shared blank looks. "A what?" questioned Ron.
"A protecao," repeated Lupin. "A protector. It has powers beyond those of the Dark Arts. No form of Dark Magic can affect a person wearing one. It has several drawbacks, but it's probably the best thing short of a counter curse."
Harry's face went very pale as Lupin handed it back to him. "Oh."
"I'm surprised you were able to conjure it, even with your advanced abilities," continued Lupin. "Very, very few wizards possess the abilities to create them."
"It was just Transfigurations," said Harry quickly. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach. If Dark Magic was involved in the disappearances, as Lupin obviously seemed to think, then Hermione would have been okay if she just hadn't gotten mad at him and returned the necklace.
Lupin nodded, pulling his stack of transcripts closer to him. "Why don't the two of you go on? I think I have this under control."
"Good luck getting it done," said Ron as he scrambled out of his seat.
"It was nice to be able to help you," added Harry. The two of them were out the door in a moment. "Did you hear that?"
"The stuff about the protecao?" said Ron. "Yeah, I was in the room-"
"Don't you get it?" said Harry. "If Hermione just hadn't of gotten mad at us, she still would have had it! None of this would have happened!"
"That's not true," said Ron, but Harry could hear the doubt in his voice. "No, it's not. Lupin even said there were drawbacks! With our luck, there would have been one right when she need it."
"Yeah," said Harry quietly. "Come on, we're free to go. Let's not waste anymore time."
* * *
"What are yeh doin' har?" demanded Hagrid sternly when he opened the door to his little cabin. Peering past him, Harry and Ron could tell that Madame Maxime was sitting on his lumpy couch. "Yeh're `sposed to be back in the `astle!"
"We know," said Harry quickly. He was still a lot out of breath; he and Ron had first dashed upstairs to get their cloaks before running all the way across the grounds to Hagrid's hut. "It's important, though. Please let us in?"
Hagrid gave them an unsure look, but he moved so he wasn't blocking the entrance. Harry and Ron scampered through the doors. It had been a long time since they'd been inside because of all the rules, and the little cabin had changed a lot in that amount of time. It was cleaner than it had ever been, and it was obvious that Madame Maxime had added quite a few homey touches all around.
"'Ould you like a cup o' tea boyzs?" said Madame Maxime politely, standing up from the sofa. Without waiting for a response, she had bustled into the kitchen.
"What `re yeh here fer?" said Hagrid sternly. "Yeh should'n be here. Af'er all that's `appened!"
"It's important, Hagrid," insisted Ron. "It's about Hermione."
Hagrid's face grew more alert. "Do yeh know somethin'? Did `ey fin' `er an' not tell me?"
Harry shook his head. "No, but we think we know where she is. Is there a place in the forest were twelve huge oaks form a perfect circle?"
"Yeh know about the Life Circle? How'd yeh know `bout that?"
Harry quickly explained the dream he had the night before. His heart sank when he saw Hagrid shaking his head as he finished.
"I checked the for'st jus' las' night, `Arry. She's not there," said Hagrid sadly. "I'm sorry, `Arry. Yeh too, Ron. I `ant to fin' `er, too, but she's not there to be found."
Harry was about to protest, but Ron cut him short by elbowing him hard in the side. "Thanks for your help, Hagrid," said Ron. "We'd better get back to the castle before someone gets worried."
"'Ou won't stay for tea?" said Madame Maxime, walking out of the kitchen with two cups on a tray.
"We'd love to," said Harry quickly, catching where Ron was going with this, "but we really have to get back to the castle. Thank you anyway, Madame Maxime."
"Yes, thank you," said Ron. He was already halfway out the door; Harry dashed out behind him.
"What are we going to do without Hagrid's help?" said Harry. He'd been so sure that Hagrid would be the one person at Hogwarts more than willing to help them.
"We'll just have to do it without him," said Ron. He seemed to be thinking. "Harry? That thing you compared Dumbledore's barrier too? What was that?"
"An electric fence for dogs?" asked Harry.
"That's it! An ecletric fence!" exclaimed Ron. "Can a dog still get through it?"
Harry nodded. "They can if they take the shock... Ron, are you suggesting we-?"
"Yes, I am," said Ron quickly. "It can't hurt, can it? Malfoy was fine a few minutes after it zapped him. It probably won't even hurt that much if you do it at a run, right?"
"Right," said Harry. Ron looked every bit as unsure as he felt. The entire idea was kind of extreme, but, then again, what had happened to Hermione was pretty extreme, too.
"Where do you think it will kick in at?" Ron wanted to know a few minutes later. They were traipsing through the snow in the direction of the forest.
"I'm not sure," said Harry. They were only about ten feet from the tree line now. "I guess we'll see, won't we?"
"Yeah..." said Ron nervously. Harry noticed he was picking up the pace. A few more steps, they were past the tree line, and nothing had happened.
"Do you think-" said Harry, too nervous to finish. He didn't want to say anything about it, just in case.
"You know," said Ron thoughtfully as they worked their way into the forest. It was only midday, but it was already dark beneath the thick shade of the trees. "The Forbidden Forest is technically part of Hogwarts grounds. Maybe that fence thing doesn't stretch this far."
"Guess not," said Harry, nevertheless glad they hadn't gotten fried by some kind of barrier they couldn't even see. "The only question is now, where do we go?"
"I don't know," said Ron nervously. The trees were getting so thick that they could no longer see the security of the castle in the distance. "Should we split up?"
"No," said Harry quickly, "we shouldn't. The next person to go missing will be one of us."
For the next fifteen minutes, they worked their way deep into the forest without much talking. It grew so dark underneath the dense trees that both boys pulled out their wands to expel some light.
"You shouldn't be here, Potter," said a low voice, "and neither should your friend. The forest is not a safe place for you at any time of the day."
Harry spun around to see a very familiar looking centaur with a palomino body, light blonde hair, and bright blue eyes.
"Firenze!" exclaimed Harry.
"You remember me," said the centaur, his tone softening. "You mustn't be here, Harry. The planets are surely without fail this time. Something evil has happened in this forest."
"Our friend is here," explained Harry. "We have to find her."
"Has she disappeared, too?" said Firenze, gazing heavenward. "We foresaw this coming many moons before. It is sometimes a shame the planets are so foolproof."
"Do you know anything about a circle of twelve oak trees in the forest?" blurted Ron suddenly. Firenze gave him a derisive look.
"Who are you?" asked Firenze.
"This is my friend, Ron," said Harry quickly. "We're looking for a circle of trees somewhere in the forest. Twelve great oaks-Hagrid called them the Life Circle?"
"You know of the Life Circle," said Firenze quietly. "It is just that, twelve majestic trees that form a sacred place. Within it is eternal warmth. Neither evil nor creature can enter it. Only wizards and witches of the purest heart have that ability. What do you want with the Life Circle?"
"We just need to get there," said Harry. "We think that our friend-her name is Hermione-is there."
Firenze nodded, but he gazed to the sky again. "A great iniquity has taken place within these trees."
"Firenze? We need your help," begged Harry. "We really need to know where the Life Circle is. Could you at least point us in the right direction?"
"I would take you," said Firenze suddenly, "but it is deadly to a centaur such as myself. It is in that direction, the north, very far from here. These woods stretch farther than you might imagine. Best of luck, Harry Potter."
Before Harry or Ron could express their gratitude, Firenze had taken off in the opposite direction. Harry looked to Ron with a hopeful expression.
"Well, we'd better get moving," said Harry. Seeing Ron's uncertain expression, he added, "Firenze wouldn't lead us astray."
Ron nodded, and they were walking again. As they got even deeper into the forest, Harry suddenly began to recognize everything they were encountering.
"Ron!" he exclaimed in awe as they passed a tree that sloped over at an almost perfect forty-five degree angle. "That tree was in my dream!"
Ron grinned. "Good! That means we're going in the right direction!"
"Do you think she'll be there?" said Harry softly a few minutes later.
"We have to hope," said Ron, "and she has to be there. I can't think of any other place she could be."
Harry nodded. "Firenze said that evil couldn't enter the Life Circle, though. If one of Voldemort's followers took her, I think that would definitely count as evil. How could they leave her-"
Harry stopped in mid sentence. About twenty paces in front of them was a perfect circle of trees, tall and majestic, just as in his dream. He looked at Ron, who had also stopped dead in his tracks.
"Are you ready?" whispered Harry. Ron could only nod. They walked slowly toward the trees. There was only a few feet of space between each one, and it was impossible to see the center of the area in between them. Harry gave Ron one last look before slipping through the trunks. Instantly, he felt an unusual warmth surround him. He looked straight ahead.
Nothing could have prepared Harry for the sight that lay before his eyes. Grisly splashes of blood led to the center, on either side of a single set of footprints. Next to them, the snow looked as if something had been dragged through it. The tracks and blood trail led directly to the same thing. Hermione.
"Hermione!" exclaimed Harry, rushing to her immediately. Ron was right behind him. He dropped down in the snow next to her, taking her hand.
"Is she alive?" whispered Ron.
"Barely," said Harry grimly. He focused his attention back to Hermione. Her skin had a pale gray tone to it, and her eyes were closed. Her face was bruised and swollen. Her usually pristine Hogwarts robes were stained with blood and ripped ragged in some places. She was breathing in shallow, uneven breathes. "Hermione?"
There was no response, but Harry tried once more. "Hermione? It's Harry. Ron's here, too."
"I don't think she can hear you," said Ron softly. He was kneeling in the snow on her other side.
"I know," whispered Harry. He shook his head. This was not the time to panic. They had to get Hermione back to the castle, and by the looks of her, they didn't have that much time. "Come on. I don't think we have time to go back to the castle and get someone."
Ron nodded. Harry already had his wand out. He tried several times, but not a single spell, from healing to weightlessness, would work.
"It must be this Life Circle," said Ron. "I'll bet you can't do magic in here."
"I guess not," said Harry. "Come on. We'll just have to work around it."
Another nod came from Ron's direction. Harry swallowed hard. He'd never been so scared in his life.
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