The Truth About Hermione Granger

During the next week, Hermione didn't have much time to wonder whether or not this Andrew Alan character was her father. She was occupied by packing up her things and a few mementos of her parents so she could move into her grandparents' house. They had a little yard sale to get rid of the rest of the things in the house, though Hermione felt guilty about selling any of it. Finally, though, she was moved into her grandparents' house.

She received a letter from Mr. King saying that Andrew Alan doubted he could be her father, but there was a slim possibility. He had agreed to meet her and do the test. So, two weeks after meeting her biological grandfather, Hermione was on her way to meet who she hoped was her biological father.

Mr. King apparated to her grandparents' house the morning of August 25th and took her on his broom to the home of Mr. Andrew Alan. Before they reached the door, however, she saw someone she recognized in the next yard. Two someones, actually.

"Hey!" she called. "Harry! Hello! Hi, Ron!" She hurried over to the gate as her two best friends hurried towards her.

"Hermione!" called Ron. "Where've you been? I've been sending you letters all summer! What's been going on? Gosh, you look horrible!"

"It's a long story," sighed Hermione. "To make it short, my parent's died in a train wreck the day before school let out."

"Oh, Hermione," said Harry. "I'm so sorry!"

"Oh, don't be!" she said, surprising them both. "Well, it's not your fault! Anyway, I've found out I was adopted and I'm a full-blooded witch! Now I'm trying to find my real father. My real mother died giving birth. That guy back there," she pointed to Mr. King, "That's my real grandfather. We're hoping the man who lives here is my real dad."

"Mr. Alan?" asked Harry, amused. "Wouldn't my aunt just love it if she found out that one of her own neighbors was a wizard!"

"This is your house, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"Course it is!" said Harry. "It's not Ron's is it? Anyway, we'd better get going before my aunt and uncle come out here and cause trouble. I'll be at Ron's place the rest of the summer, Hermione. Let us know what's going on, okay?"

"Sure," she said, waving at the two as she backed away from the fence. "Oh, my grandfather's taking me to Diagon Ally tomorrow to get my school things. Meet me there?"

"I'll check with mum, but I'm sure it'll be fine!" called Ron as he and Harry climbed into the back of a very nice Saturn. "See you later!"

"Bye!" called Hermione, hurrying back to her grandfather, who was now standing on the front porch with a tall man she didn't know. This must be Mr. Alan.

"Friends of yours, Hermione?" asked Mr. King.

"Yes, sir," she replied. "Ron and Harry. I go to school with them."

"You don't mean Harry Potter?" blurted Mr. Alan.

"Yes," she replied. "He's really very nice."

"Well," he said. "That explains a lot! His aunt tells everyone he goes to St. Brutus's School for Incurably Criminal Boys! If I'd known it was Harry POTTER she was talking about, I'd have taken it to the Ministry and had him taken away! The way she treats him!"

"Hermione," interrupted Mr. King. "This is Andrew Alan. Mr. Alan, Miss Hermione Granger."

"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Alan," said Hermione.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, too, Miss Granger," he said. "Why don't you two come in and we'll do the test?"

"All right," said Hermione, feeling her stomach do a couple of flip-flops.

Mr. Alan showed them into the parlor, a great room of deep green velvet with lovely emerald lampshades and oak trim. Hermione sat on the soft green sofa and Mr. Alan sat next to her. "Just relax now, Miss Granger," he said. "This will only take a minute."

Hermione took a deep breath as Mr. Alan placed a hand on her cheek. "Reveleous Parti!" he mumbled.

Hermione sat still until both Mr. Alan and Mr. King sighed. "No good?" she asked.

"No," said Mr. Alan. "I'm sorry, Hermione. It appears that you are not my daughter."

Hermione sighed. She had been hoping....

"If he had been, we'd have seen his face superimposed upon yours," sighed Mr. King. "Unfortunately, nothing happened."

"Well, that's okay," said Hermione. "Perhaps it's the other man you mentioned."

Both older men stiffened. "I hope not," said Mr. Alan. "For your sake, Miss Granger. Perhaps it's better if she doesn't even know, Roger."

"Perhaps," he answered. "But she has as much a right as he does. I will have to send him a letter tonight. Hermione, come on. We have a lot to talk about."

Obediently, Hermione rose, thanked Mr. Alan for his time, and followed Mr. King out to his broomstick once more. Soon, they were back at Hermione's grandparents' house. Mr. King led her into the kitchen and sat her down at the table. He made some tea and made her drink it before he said anything else about her father.

"Hermione," he sighed, finally. "What I am about to tell you is going to be hard to understand. The man who could be your father is a hard man. He's very dark, even cruel at times. I'm not sure if he would be different with you because you're his daughter, or maybe he's changed, but from what I remember of him, he was not a very nice person. In fact...

"No, never mind that. In any case, I want to be sure that you understand what this could mean. He may not want you; he may not even want to know you exist. I will tell you who he is, but only if you are absolutely sure you want to know."

Hermione thought about it. What if he didn't want her? What would she do then? Would she be able to handle that sort of rejection? And what did he mean by "dark and cruel?" Was the man a dark wizard? Was he a-?

Was he a Death Eater?

Finally, though, Hermione just had to know. Even if he didn't want her, at least she would know who he was. And, at least she would still have her grandparents and Mr. King.

"I want to know who he is," she said. "I can handle it."

Mr. King sighed, pushed his thinning gray hair out of his face and looked Hermione right in the eye. "Hermione," he said. "The only other man who could possibly be your father is a man you already know. He teaches at Hogwarts. His name is Severus Snape."