Veritaserum and Polyjuice
The scarf that she had tucked tighter around her neck was Draco’s and she had stolen it after he gave it to her because she was ‘shivering too much’ the other day during their walk. She tucked her nose into it, wishing that his scent still clung to it, but it was brand new and she realized that he probably hadn’t worn it long enough.
Harry was strolling along beside her, his hands tucked into the pocket of his coat. “Harry, please tell me that you’ve figured out what you’re supposed to be doing. The task is two days away, and honestly, I’m terrified for you.”
He sighed. “I know. So am I.”
“So that’s a no? You have no idea what you’re doing, do you?”
“Nope.” She groaned, dropping her head onto the railing of the bridge. Lifting her head, she saw Cedric Diggory approaching. He smiled at her, and pulled Harry off to the side whispering something to him. Hermione took the opportunity to scan the grounds. It was beautiful, and her mind drifted off to Draco, her fingertips pressing softly to her lips.
Harry ran off, after telling her goodbye and she stared after him confused.
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“Okay what was it again?”
“Come seek us where our voices sound, an hour long you’ll have to look..”
“So, obviously the Black Lake and you’ll have to look for an hour. That’s the problem that I’m having with all of this. I’m not sure what exactly is going to aid you in being underwater for an hour.”
“If you’re interested in plants there is a book that might help you better–” Hermione turned around to face Neville.
“Neville! You’re a bloody genius. Do you know a plant that could help Harry breathe underwater?”
Neville was staring at her wide-eyed, his cheeks flushing as Hermione dropped her hands from his arms. She had basically grabbed the poor bloke. “There’s well, there’s gillyweed.”
Hermione’s eyes widened and she whirled around to find Professor Moody staring at them. “Neville. Help Harry put away his books. Granger, Weasley you’re coming with me.”
“But Professor! Harry is only hours away from the next task! We need to help him!”
“No. What you need to do is follow me to the Headmaster’s office. Harry, go and get some sleep.”
Hermione scowled, turning back to Harry with an apologetic look. “I’ll talk to Snape. He’ll get it for you.”
Moody led them through the halls towards Professor Dumbledore’s office, and she fought the urge to turn him into a peacock. When they entered, she noticed that Cho and Fleur’s younger sister were also there. She inhaled sharply when the last piece of the song fell into place.
‘To recover what we took.’
She glared at Dumbledore, and shuffled across the room to stand next to Snape.
We’re going into the bloody water aren’t we?
Much to my disapproval-yes.
Harry needs Gillyweed.
Snape raised an eyebrow at her and nodded faintly. She sat down and tuned out Dumbledore’s speech, already knowing what he was planning on doing. When the Potions were passed out, it only took her seconds for everything to fade to Black.
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She had broken the surface of the lake, inhaling water as she did and slipped back under. The water was freezing, she felt herself shivering, limbs feeling like they weighed a thousand pounds. That water invaded her airways and she thought to kick her legs upwards. In a panic she inhaled more water, and a stinging pain burned her lungs.
Suddenly she was being yanked upwards, and dragged forwards, more water entering her airway. The sun glistened off of the water reflected on her eyelids as they drifted shut.
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She was coughing, shivering and burning all at the same time. Every breath felt like she was inhaling sandpaper, and her throat was raw.
Moving was impossible– there must have been a weight pressing down on her because everything felt too heavy. Except her eyelids. She blinked them open, squinting in the bright light.
“Fucking helll, Hermione.” The voice was broken, shattered and in her fog she couldn't place it.
She could make out the shape of a sharp nose and dark black shape. Her teeth were chattering and she heard Madam Pomfrey swear.
“She's not warming up. Did you brew the potion incorrectly, Severus?”
“No. Everything was from the same batch and nobody else is having side effects.”
“Did any of you bother seeing if she knew how to swim before tying her below the fucking lake? She was drowning when she came back up.” That voice made her feel warmth and she wished that they would keep talking. “She's fucking blue!”
“Severus! She needs to get to the Infirmary. Now or we're going to lose her.”
Hermione whimpered, trying to turn before she was being lifted suddenly, tucked against a chest. The familiar hum of a bond calming her.
Dad?
The person carrying her faltered a step and she wondered if they were going to drop her.
I've got you.
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She blinked her eyes open quickly, flinging herself into a sitting position so fast that her head spun and she almost fell off the bed.
“Oh my God, Hermione!” Her head lifted and she blinked away the fuzziness as Narcissa's face came into view. “Are you alright, darling?”
She nodded, unsure of what exactly she was referring to and then it set in how utterly freezing she felt. Narcissa's normally cold hands felt like they were a thousand degrees.
“I-” She tried again, attempting to clear the scratchiness from her voice. “I’m cold.”
Narcissa nodded, grabbing the blankets and tucking them around her. Then, she reached for a large discarded black robe and tucked that around her as well. She burrowed into it, her nose peeking out as she glanced around. It was only Narcissa and her at the moment, and the smell of moss and leather enveloped her.
“Where is everybody?” Narcissa stared at her before tipping her head to the side. She had just noticed that Theo was asleep in the chair next to her, his hand underneath his head that was placed on the table next to her bed. She smiled, reaching out to tug gently on one of his curls.
Theo blinked, rubbing his eyes before jolting, eyes scanning the room until they fell on hers. He froze, and stared at her for a moment. “You're whole and breathing under there, Granger?”
“Yes.” She peeked her head out further, knowing that the trembling in his voice was because he couldn't see her eyes properly. She shivered as she turned her head to look at him and he sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before mouthing thank you.
She burrowed back into the robes and closed her eyes, trying to place the scent that seemed to be calming her. The doors to the Infirmary flung open with a bang loud enough to make her almost jump out of the bed. She moved the cloak enough for her to peer out with one eye.
Draco looked furious, his eyes almost black as he stared at her. He came beside her quickly, wrapping his arms around the large bundle that she now was underneath the cloak and blankets. “She's fine, Draco.”
“She almost wasn't fine, mother. I watched her turn blue.”
“As did I, and Theo. She’s okay. Just a little bit cold, aren't you dear?”
Hermione nodded and then realized that nobody would see her doing that in her little cave and against Draco's chest.
“Yes, I'm alright. I'm just a little cold. This is helping.” She felt Draco slip his hand beneath the hood of the cloak, wiggling it until it rested on the side of her neck and he sighed as his fingers came in contact with her skin. He left them there for a moment, before slipping them out, and releasing her.
“Are those my robes..Narcissa?” Snape’s drawl came from the right of her and she felt a fuzzy memory surface.
I was cold.
Snape stepped closer to her and she peeked her head out at him, her hair frizzy and trying to escape its containment. “Hermione, did you take anything or eat anything before you took that potion in Dumbledore’s office.”
She paused, thinking. “I was having anxiety. I get it sometimes after the World Cup and hadn't slept well the night before. I took a Calming Draught about ten minutes before we went to Dumbledore’s office.”
She felt Snape’s relief through the tether that they shared before it sparked into anger. “That's what messed the potion up. Her body was far too relaxed when she took mine and it took her longer for her body to react properly. If we would've been able to give notice to the students then none of this would've happened as the proper procedures would've been followed.”
His voice was cold and she wondered if he was mad at her or at somebody else.
Are you upset with me?
No.
She burrowed herself further into the blankets and heard another set of footsteps approach. Madam Pomfrey attempted to find her head underneath the Burrow of blankets and she sighed, pulling them down. Everybody around her was staring expectantly and she tipped her head to chance a glance at Draco.
His eyes were scanning any inch of her that he could see, as if taking inventory of every freckle that she had on her face. She watched his eyes clear from black to a light gray and slowly the tension unfurled from his shoulders when his eyes met hers.
Madam Pomfrey turned her head towards her, a scan popping up above her head that Theo jumped up to read.
“She is still very cold. Not in the danger department but definitely should be monitored. The main thing right now is keeping her warm. I'll have to keep an eye on her for a few days. I believe you're right about the Calming Draught mixing with your potion. There were traces left on the scan which explains why she probably didn't have any function over her limbs. Now, she needs to rest.”
She burrowed herself deeper in the cloak and turned to lie down, her hand slipping behind her to motion for Theo to come closer. She felt his slip onto the bed after muttering an extension charm and his arm came around her hip attempting to pull her closer. She could feel the heat radiating off of him and her fingers slipped from the cloak to brush against Draco's hand.
He leaned forward, pressing a kiss into her hair. “I was prepared to give you my last breath if it ensured that you took another on that dock, Hermione.”
He released her, stepping aside for his mother to smooth her hair before Draco followed her from the Infirmary. She wondered what she was going to say to the Headmaster as she drifted off into sleep.
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Hermione rolled her eyes, tucking herself under the mound of blankets that were being draped over her. She had been released from the Infirmary, under strict orders to make sure that she was warm and report any changes in her health. Theo and Draco had taken it upon themselves to be rather smothering–quite literally. They were currently throwing blankets on top of her, tucking her in as they charmed her bed to extend, climbing in beside her. Draco had all of her homework in his hands that she had missed while being in the Infirmary, and Theo was busying himself opening a few of the letters that had been slipped to her. She huffed, ripping them from his hands. “Those are private, Theodore.”
“Don’t ever call me that again, please. I might Avada myself right here.” Hermione gasped, swatting him. Draco had frozen next to her and then reached out, plucking an envelope from her grasp. She turned, recognizing the seal immediately and stared wide-eyed at the envelope in Draco’s hands.
“Why is Viktor Krum writing to you?” His tone was calm and she swallowed, snaking her hand up Draco’s arm and resting it against his hand.
“I’m not sure honestly. We’re just friends. I don’t think that he has very many of those. I did make it quite clear that my heart belongs elsewhere.” Draco’s fingers twitched against the paper.
“Oi. What do you mean your heart belongs elsewhere?” Hermione flushed, her eyes not leaving Draco’s as she reached down, plucking up her schoolbooks.
“Oh sod off Theo. You know exactly whose bloody hands hold it.” Theo stilled beside her before he reached a hand across her lap, smacking Draco across the head.
“What the hell!”
“That’s for whatever you’re going to inevitably do to upset her. You might be my best mate but…” Something unintelligible was mouthed behind her and she swatted both of them. Draco was still holding the letter.
“Draco. Open the damn thing. I know you’re curious.”
His lean fingers twitched against the parchment, before he set it down on the table next to him glaring at it momentarily. “No. I trust you.”
A smile pulled at her lips as she snuggled into her blankets, a shiver passing through her. “Good. Now will one of you get me something to snack on? Please? I’m starved.”
Theo slipped from the bed before glaring at Draco. “Nope, you’re coming with me. I’m sleeping in that bed tonight as well and the last thing I need is to know you two were snogging in it.”
Draco sighed, slipping from the bed as he threw her a smile. “Little late for that mate.”
She didn’t see Theo’s reaction as they slipped from the room and into the hallway. Contemplating opening the letter, she decided against it and instead focused on her book. Getting lost in the text, she barely registered them coming back until her eyes lifted to find them spreading out their haul on her desk. Her eyes landed on Draco who was staring at the unopened envelope with a smug smirk.
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She was on the way to the Potions classroom, bundled up far too much but unfortunately the class was in the dungeons–when Harry had grabbed her hand and pulled her into an alcove. “Hermione.”
“Harry.” He pulled her into a hug, his hand resting on the back of her head. “I was worried about you.”
“Me?! You were in the damn Infirmary. They wouldn’t let me in to see you.”
“Yes well, I seemed to have been in a Viper Pit with the amount of Slytherins that were surrounding me.” She smiled, pulling away from him. “Right, I’m guessing you have something to tell me so on with it.”
Harry’s green eyes suddenly turned serious and he stared at her for a moment. “Did you hear about Crouch?” Hermione nodded. She had been informed that Harry had found his body at the edge of the woods, covered with an invisibility cloak that he accidently wound up uncovering when he tripped over it. Pansy surprisingly had been the one to relay the information to her, after she snuck in to braid her hair the second night she had spent in the Infirmary. Blaise had silently accompanied her, asking questions periodically about Theo when they could be fit into a conversation without drawing suspicion.
“What about him?”
Harry glanced around, before turning back towards her his voice dropping to a whisper. “He had a son, Barty Crouch Jr. He was a Death Eater and wound up being sentenced to Azkaban, by his father–Barty Crouch senior.”
Hermione gasped. “No!”
“Yes. I think that Barty Jr. is here somewhere…or at least somewhere with access to kill his father. It’s the only person that I can think of that wants him dead.”
Hermione nodded. “That makes sense actually. Who do you think it is?”
Harry’s eyes were bright green in the dimly lit dungeon alcove and she stared at them. “I don’t know, but I intend on finding out.”
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Hermione was tucked into the stands with Draco, Pansy, Daphne, Blaise, Theo and surprisingly Ron–although that one was with incredible protest. He had slipped in beside her before the rest of them had sat down, and when the Slytherin group had appeared they promptly slid him to the side and took their places next to her. He looked rather upset by the notion, but it was when Draco took her hand in his with a smug smirk did Ron’s ears turn a lovely shade of red.
Small screens appeared, showing the contestants as they made their way through the maze, each person having their own small square.
They watched as Harry made his way through the maze, the hedges shifting and altering as he twisted and turned. Cedric seemed to be having a rather hard time with a Boggart while Viktor was tearing through the maze with ease. There seemed to be something poised, almost deadly as he maneuvered and there was something unsettling about it.
Fleur, on the other hand, was running wildly through the maze, terrified as she fought off one encounter after the other. Her eyes drifted back to Harry's screen and noticed that if he turned left he would be encountering Fleur. A scream rippled through the maze, making the hair on her arms stand up as she clutched onto Draco's hand.
Her eyes flicked to Fleur's screen and she saw her writhing in pain on the ground. Theo gasped next to her at the same time that she realized it looked like the Cruciatus Curse. Her eyes flicked to Harry's screen to find him running towards the screen, Krum coming into view with his wand trained on Fleur.
Draco gripped her hand tightly and she heard him swallow next to her. “What the fuck?”
“Something isn't right…” Viktor turned at that moment towards Harry and she caught the clouded look in his eyes before he turned, taking off down the path. She almost stood from her chair but instead all that fell from her lips were three words in a whisper. “The Imperius Curse.”
Theo nodded his head next to her, reaching out to take her hand. “Something isn't right.”
She nodded, realizing that he had muttered the same three words she had a moment ago as she focused on the screens in front of her. Harry had just sent up red sparks from his wand for them to retrieve Fleur. An idea formed and she tore her gaze away, looking at Snape.
Something isn't right.
It took a moment, but she watched his gaze flick to her.
I know.
He bit her lip, wondering how much information she should indulge before she decided.
Harry said that he thinks Barty Crouch Jr. is in the castle somewhere. He said that he thinks that he killed his father.
She didn't get a reply but she watched his eyes move towards Moody. She furrowed her brows, trying to piece together what she was missing so hard that she almost missed Harry pulling Cedric towards the glistening Cup. They seemed to be debating something for a moment, before their hands touched the cup together and she watched as they vanished.
The audience was quiet, waiting for their arrival and Hermione watched the judges share a nervous glance. “It's not supposed to be taking this long. Something isn't right.”
“I think that we gathered that, Mione.’” Ron didn't say it maliciously and she noticed that his eyes were trained on the maze. Both boys holding her hands tensed.
After what seemed like forever, Hermione saw them appear. Harry was lying over Cedric’s unmoving body, his frame racking with sobs as he clutched at him. Hermione stood, blending in with the rest of the stands that were cheering.
She squinted, focusing on Cedric’s eyes that stared back at her, lifeless.
He's dead. Cedric is dead.
She was focused on Harry's lips trying desperately to read what they were saying, but her eyes only caught one word–Voldemort. She was standing, slipping from the stands as she made her way through the crowd. Snape had looked at Moody. Harry had come back with Cedric dead. Harry and Cedric had been transported–somewhere–from what she guessed was the Cup, the same Cup that Moody had placed. Except, was it Moody? She remembered him showing them the Unforgivables…the way that he had almost seemed ecstatic about doing so. He also had called Neville specifically. She stopped, her steps faltering as she glanced around. It all clicked into place.
Barty Crouch Jr.
Barty Jr. had been responsible and sent to Azkaban for torturing Neville’s parents with the same curse that he had demonstrated in front of him. His father was found dead in the woods. The sound of footsteps behind her sent her twirling, wand aimed as two figures came into view. Draco was looking at her with wide eyes and Theo seemed to be staring at her intently.
“We need to get to Moody’s office.” It was a statement, because she already knew that they were going to follow her. Or try and talk her out of it. Either way, she knew that neither of them would leave her alone. She spun, her hand still tightly gripping her wand as she made her way through the damp grass. Hogwarts was silent and still–almost every person at the stands behind them.
“Hermione.”
She ignored the whispered hiss behind her as she made her way through the cold castle. Every step seemed to echo off of the stone walls and she tried to focus on her library, reshuffling the shelves around her as she made her way through the halls.
“Hermione.” This one barely brushed through the walls, a soft caress in her head. She barely registered the grip on her, the faint pressure on her forearm. Cold hands were against her face and she knew that she should be able to feel the rough calluses on the pads of the thumbs that brushed over her cheeks. “Pull it back. Come on. Focus on me and pull it back. Step out of your library.”
Hermione startled, the books jolting as Draco’s voice caressed the spines of the books she tucked away neatly. Carefully, she walked towards the door that his voice drifted from and stepped through. Everything came into focus then, Theo standing in front of the door that led to Moody’s office, wand raised and flicking as he disabled the Wards. Draco was standing in front of her, tipping her head up towards his as his hands brushed against her skin. His gray eyes were a darker silver and she focused on them, steadying herself as her library faded from focus. He nodded, slipping his hand to the base of her neck as he pulled her towards him, pressing his lips to her forehead.
“What are we doing here? What did you figure out?”
“Voldemort’s alive. He’s back.” Draco flinched as if she had slapped him, and his fingers twitched against her skin. “I read Harry’s lips when he was leaning over Cedric’s body.” A shiver went through her as she remembered the look of his cold eyes staring back at her. Draco pressed her against his chest briefly and she breathed him in. Mint, parchment and the faint smell of apples lingered on his clothes, and she hummed, letting herself calm against him before pulling away.
“That doesn’t explain what we’re doing here. ” Draco’s voice rumbled close to her, and she stepped towards the door that Theo had opened, his blue eyes fixed on her as she made her way through. Well, attempted to. Theo had put his arm up to stop her, stepping in front of her as he scanned the empty room.
“Harry found out that Barty Crouch Jr. was alive. He was imprisoned when Igor gave him away as a Death Eater to avoid time in Azkaban.” She trailed after Theo, her eyes flitting over the room as the familiar smell of Polyjuice Potion drifted to her nose. “Moody is always drinking from a flask, and in class he was sure to demonstrate to Neville the same curse that Barty Crouch Jr. got sent to Azkaban for doing to Neville's parents. Barty Crouch Sr. was found dead in the forest and the only person who wanted to kill him that badly was his own son.”
There was a loud banging from a massive chest that sat against the right of the room, a winding staircase behind it that led up to where she imagined the living quarters to be. Theo’s eyes met hers. “Moody was the one that planted the Cup that must’ve been a Port Key. Because Harry left with Cedric and came back with him dead.”
Hermione nodded, stepping towards the chest that was thumping. “I can't imagine that there's a Boggart in there.”
Theo stepped forwards, raising his wand towards it before they heard footsteps and hushed whispers from the hallway. Draco’s arm was around her in an instant, dragging her backwards towards a secluded section off of the room. It was almost like a closet. Theo scrambled behind them, tucking himself into the dark section of the room. The faint thump of wood against stone halted just outside of the door, and then it stopped. Draco slipped his hand over her mouth, tucking her tighter against his chest as she felt his wand press against her stomach. Theo was standing in front of her, his back against her chest.
She heard Harry’s voice and her eyes widened, when she realized that Moody had shut the door, entering the room with presumably just the two of them alone. “Does it hurt?”
“Not really…not anymore.” Harry’s voice sounded detached, almost as if he wasn’t quite in his body and she wondered briefly, if he was in shock.
“What was it like to stand in the Dark Lord’s presence? Were there others in the graveyard with you?”
“It was terrifying, almost as if it was straight from one of my nightmares, I-” She heard him starting to come back to himself, more reassurance entering his words. “I never said that I was in a Graveyard.”
Moody seemed to have let out a strangled sort of noise and she heard scrambling, glasses falling against each other. He must have run out of Polyjuice Potion. “You know, it was me who gave the idea to that idiot to show you the Dragons. Thought that he was smart enough to do that on his own? And Diggory? Think that he just stumbled upon a bath and happened to have his egg with him? Idiot. I orchestrated the whole thing. I made sure that you were right where the Dark Lord needed you, where he wanted you. Imagine…the rewards that I’m going to be given for killing Harry Potter.”
Hermione struggled against Draco’s hold, and he pressed her tighter against him, his wand pressing roughly into her stomach. His breath was a whisper against her neck as his thumb trembled against her nose. A flash of light lit the room, and she heard a loud crash followed by Dumbledore’s voice.
“Severus! The Veritaserum.” It was an order and Hermione stilled, trembling in Draco’s arms. Theo seemed like he wasn’t breathing, his hand coming back behind him to grasp onto hers.
She heard strange noises that sounded almost like a creature being killed and heard hushed whispers that she couldn’t make out. Harry stumbled into her view, his back to them but she could make out his left shoulder, blood dripping down his arm as it pooled on the ground beside him.
“Do you know who I am?”*
“Albus Dumbledore.”* It was wretched from his mouth as though he was strangled. Hermione knew that if you fought Veritaserum it made it worse.
“Are you Alastor Moody?”*
“No.”
Hermione saw Harry disappear, his steps echoing across the silent room before Dumbledore’s booming voice had her jump. “Get away from there!”
There was a sound of clicking, almost like multiple locks shifting and unlocking at once, metal upon metal and then she heard somebody sigh. “We know who was stealing from your reserves now, Severus. Are you alright down there?”
A faint reply whispered in the silence and Hermione couldn’t make it out. “Who is that then?” Harry’s voice was bitter, filled with curiosity. She knew that he was blaming whoever was in the chair for Cedric’s death, but she knew he was blaming himself more.
There were strange, strangled noises that echoed throughout the room, and she heard something fall to the ground. Somebody was breathing heavily, their breaths strained. “Tell Azkaban that they’re missing a prisoner.”
It was the most bitter that she had heard Dumbledore say anything, and then the quiet sound of receding footsteps echoed down the hallway. For a moment Hermione wondered if they had all left but Theo was standing ramrod straight in front of her, his fingers trembling against hers. Then she felt it, the small yank on her bond with Snape before an angry message was hissed back to her.
Stay right where you are. Do not leave this room for five minutes. Do not speak of this to anybody. Make sure that you, Theo and Draco all meet me in my office after the feast.