Metamorphome

Chapter Nine: The Friend of My Friend Does Not Have to Be My Friend

"That potion is not effective as an antidote."

"Yes it is!" Hermione insisted, pointing at the potion book. All three were sitting on the couch, Hermione between Morrigan and Draco, a book in her lap. They were all looking down at the book, eagerly perusing the pages.

"No, it's not. See, lacewing. That counteracts St. John's Wort."

"Oh poppycock!" Hermione snapped. "Who told you that?"

"Severus Snape himself," Morrigan said smugly.

"Oh, and did he just thrust this random bit of information into your hands one day? 'Here, Ms. Flaherty. Hope it comes in handy next time you're debating with Hermione Granger.'"

"No. I tried to make another potion with the same ingredients and it didn't work. I explained to him what I did and he told me why."

"Well, he has to be wrong. I've used this at least twice on Harry and it worked fine."

"When on earth have you needed to administer antidotes to Harry?" demanded Morrigan shrilly. "Why would you?"

"Because I was the only one available."

"Oh, and you just happened to have lacewing available, as opposed to a more experienced Healer."

"Fine," Hermione snapped. "I lied...a little. I've never administered it, but I've concocted it and given it to Lupin."

"And how did that work?" Morrigan demanded triumphantly.

"He didn't say," Hermione sniffed.

"Ha! I win!"

"Enough!" Draco bellowed. "Morrigan wins by better argument. Really Hermione, you're smarter. You should be able to argue more effectively."

"Hey!" both girls yelled simultaneously.

"I am not dumber than Hermione," Morrigan protested.

"And I'm trying my hardest but she's so difficult to argue with!" Hermione whined.

"How so?" Draco asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Even when she knows she's wrong, she won't give up!"

"Oh, and you're not the same way at all," Morrigan said sarcastically.

"I'm not," Hermione claimed, sticking her nose in the air. For a moment no one moved. Finally the three burst into laughter

"What are you doing?" asked a voice. All three turned to see Ginny in the doorway, arms folded and her face reddening.

Ron walked in the room, the grin on his face evaporating quickly. Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, Remus Lupin, and Harry all came to a stop in the doorway, each with an identical expression of shock.

To make matters worse, Draco, Hermione, and Morrigan jumped up immediately, spreading apart--which only served to make each look exceedingly guilty.

"Is there a reason why she's out of her cell?" Ginny growled angrily. "Hermione?"

"She's not really a prisoner now," Hermione insisted. "She's...well, that is to say...I guess...she's changed."

"Oh yes?" Ginny asked, her voice rising to a shout. No one moved as she began to rail on them. "She's no more than You-Know-Who's pet and you're letting her roam free through the house. Even more, you're acting as if you're good friends, like you actually like each other!"

"I do!" Hermione persisted. "Morrigan's nice, if you got to know her--"

"Hermione, you're defending a murderer! A monster!"

"That's enough!" Morrigan cried, and both shut up immediately. "In the event that you've forgotten that I'm right here, I'll just remind you, and no matter what you say, I know what I am, and Hermione knows what I am, and it seems more so than you do, Miss Weasley. Now, if you will kindly remember that Hermione is your friend, and not your own 'pet,' you'll find that there's an explanation."

"That's enough, Morrigan," Draco said, and Morrigan fell silent, although her face had flushed and she looked ready to jump at Ginny and cut out her throat. "Hermione and I decided that Morrigan proved well enough that she had become something a bit more and forgot her slightly...er, murderous habits. She's been moved to the upstairs."

"Draco, let me handle this," Hermione whispered.

Ron's eyes narrowed, looking between them. "Oh, so you're pretty cozy now, are you?" he asked quietly, looking his old school nemesis up and down. "Have you forgotten that I'm still alive, Malfoy, or had you been hoping that since you didn't have to see me, I'd gone from the face of the earth?"

"I don't care whether you're alive or not," Draco said coolly. "It doesn't matter one way or the other."

"Oh, so you'll try to win Hermione over either way?"

"Win me over?!" Hermione shrieked. "Do you trust me so little Ron?"

Finally recovering from his shock, Lupin stepped in, silently cursing at himself for letting it get this far. "That's enough. You need to figure this out in private. Flaherty, I think it best that you go to your room for now." He pointed to basement but Morrigan's lip curled beautifully, and Draco was privately proud of her expression. No doubt she had learned it from he himself.

"My room is at the top of the stairs, old man," she snarled. "And I'll stay where I am. I'm not hurting anyone."

"Morrigan, let's go," Draco said quietly. "We don't want to be in the middle of this. We're too far in the focus of it as it is."

Morrigan led the way to the stairs, with Draco following her quietly, placing a hand on her back gently, doing exactly as he had promised--holding her up.

* * *

Molly, Remus, and Arthur all sat around the table, each with similar worried expressions. "It's rather unconvincing that she's changed," Remus muttered in low tones.

"She seemed to genuinely care for Hermione," Arthur said. "That's not the care you can purchase, either. She was prepared to stand between them like a dragon and her eggs. And Hermione a Muggleborn!" He shook his head. "The girl you've described would not have done that."

"How can we trust her to be genuine?" Remus asked, leaning over the table, trying to keep his voice hushed. "She could pretend to be reformed and then damn us all to Voldemort. She could be a very good actress."

"Maybe Mad-Eye can come take a look at her..." Mrs. Weasley suggested, but Remus shook his head.

"He tried, Harry tried, and I bet even Draco's tried...although it seems if he did find something, Draco wouldn't be much of a help. He seems to be nuts about the girl, too."

"He wasn't a month ago," Mrs. Weasley replied doubtfully. "That boy was staring daggers at her. I was glad he was looking at her, not me..." She repressed a shudder as she remembered the exact expression on his face as Draco learned he would be spending the next few weeks with Morrigan.

"Yeah, but you know how kids are," Arthur told Molly. "As much as I hate to even consider the possibility, the girl is very pretty. She shares a night with Malfoy, and the boy fancies himself in love. She has him hook, line, and sinker."

"Oh please!" Molly hissed. "Malfoy's smarter than that. He wouldn't sink to that level."

"Lucius would have," Arthur cautioned her. "I wouldn't put it past his son."

"Look," Remus cut in, "It's agreed the girl can't be trusted. But I don't think she seduced, Malfoy. He seemed to be more in charge of her than the other way around. She depended on both Hermione and Draco for support. Every move she made, she glanced at the boy to make sure he thought it was okay. It's more likely that Draco seduced her to make her more docile and easier to break. She takes his word as law. He tells her to be nice to Hermione. It makes things easier, so he doesn't have to constantly make sure Flaherty's not trying to kill Hermione."

"Flaherty likes Hermione," Arthur said shortly. "That girl wouldn't touch Hermione if Draco told her to, and it wouldn't work vice versa."

"You're sure?" Remus asked.

"Positive," Arthur affirmed. "Look, this girl tortured my daughter and did it without flinching. But if those two actually did change her, we need to congratulate them for the renovation, because of all Death Eaters, she would be the hardest to change."

"I'm just incredulous at her familiarity with Hermione," Mrs. Weasley said with a shake of her head. "She seemed so comfortable, so friendly. Like she...like she trusted her. If she's as good an actress as that...she was in the right profession before we captured her," she finished. "Lying is first nature for that crowd. I hope she wasn't lying. I would hate for Hermione's trust to be broken like that."

All three adults nodded, their eyes flickering with doubt and worry.

* * *

Ginny and Ron look remarkably similar, especially when extremely angry. Their ears turn bright red, their freckles seem to enflame, and their eyes narrow to slits. Their necks shorten into their shoulders, which seem to come up, and their arms lay rigid at their sides with their fists clenched.

Right now, both were angry with Hermione, but for different reasons, so Hermione alone stood to defend herself, knowing that this was the best way to fight them. With Morrigan or Draco beside her, things would be much worse.

"Why the hell did you think it was okay to be friends with that creature?"

"I wasn't friends with her until she changed," Hermione pleaded. "Draco and I have been able to make some real progress--"

"Draco?!" snapped Ron. "Draco? Why is it Draco?" he sneered scathingly. "I remember when you used to insist on calling him Malfoy, the same as everyone else. Did you forget what happened to you so many times because of him?"

"You'd remember anything," Hermione snarled, "if it means bringing it up later when it most conveniences you. You're so predictable, Ron. Harry was the only 'safe' male for me to be around, because you didn't have to worry about someone being better than you. And even Harry bothered you sometimes."

"Leave me out of this," Harry said, walking in the room with both hands up. "I don't want anything to do with it."

"You couldn't stand my relationship with Viktor, and if I was in any near proximity of another male, if I seemed to be enjoying their presence, you'd latch on to some other girl and try to make me jealous. But I always trusted you. Isn't that remarkable? Maybe I should dye my hair and put on a Venetian robe. Yeah, that's what I'll do. Start calling me Desdemona, will you? I'll call you Othello, Morrigan can be Iago, and Draco can be Cassio."

"What's that?" snapped Ron.

"Oh, right, you know about Marvin the Muggle, or whatever the hell that is, but you can't even read real literature. Real Muggle literature."

"Hermione, that's rather irrelevant right now," Harry called from the couch, looking up from the Potion book.

"I thought you wanted to wanted to stay out of this," Hermione growled in a terrible voice.

"Sorry," Harry replied meekly, going back to the potions.

"That aside, Hermione, you've managed to stay for a month in a house with two people that you should, by all rights, hate, and you managed to come out best mates with them," Ginny scowled.

"Oh don't be ridiculous, Ginny!" Hermione said exasperatedly. "You'll always be my best friends, but should I be unhappy my entire stay here? Draco and I came to an agreement, and not long later, Morrigan began showing signs of alteration. She was crying out for help. Should I have ignored her? Left her a murderer? Because it seems like you're condemning her for changing, and you're condemning her for being the old Morrigan, so which is it? Or are you going to condemn her either way? Does she have any direction to go without your disapproval?"

"I don't have to approve of her!" Ginny shouted. "I don't have to like her! I can hate her if I want!"

"Well that's not what she wants!" Hermione yelled back.

"I don't care what she wants! I didn't want to be tortured, did I?"

"Well you're fine now!" screamed Hermione. "You're obsessing about this, Ginny! Let it go! The Longbottoms are insane, and you're living your life normally! You can see your family; you can control your bowels, your mouth! Be grateful, would you?"

"I shouldn't have to be grateful!" Ginny hissed. "Because until you've been under that, you don't understand!"

"I do understand, and I have been under that Curse! Or have you forgotten?"

Ginny's face turned pale as she did indeed remember. A mission had gone astray one night, a year and a half ago, and Hermione had barely gotten out alive. She had barely been able to sleep for a month after that night. It was Ginny that stayed by her as she relived the nightmare over and over again.

"No," Ginny whispered, looking away.

"That man's son has become a great friend to me, and I'm okay that it was his father. I'm just fine with it. In fact, I pity Lucius Malfoy. I don't hate him. I hope to god for Draco's sake that someday he gets better. But I guess a bit of compassion would kill other people."

"Your compassion is insane!" Ginny cried self-righteously. "It lacks wisdom."

"If Lucius genuinely apologized to me, I would accept," Hermione said. "Because I've seen what guilt can do to a person. I understand that it can rip you apart. And if I accept Morrigan's apologies for myself, for what she was, then I can live with her, I can accept her as she is. I don't want to live with the burden of hatred on my mind. It takes energy to actively hate people. And if I don't have to hate them, why should I?"

"Fine," Ginny snapped. "It's your decision. But I won't like her. I won't forgive her. She deserves what she gets after what she's done."

Hermione scowled, then turned to Ron. "Well? Do you have anything to say?"

"You sure you don't want to be with Malfoy instead?" he asked in a surly voice.

"Positive," Hermione replied softly. He looked up at her with a reassured smile, and Hermione finally walked up to him, throwing her arms around him. She pulled back slightly and kissed him on the mouth, but she couldn't help but to think that maybe she'd rather be kissing Draco.

* * *

Hermione found her way to the kitchen where the three adults were talking in hushed voices. "Hi," Remus said, interrupting Arthur, whose mouth shut with a snap. "Is the storm finished?" he asked, referring to the fighting in the living room.

"Yes," Hermione sighed. "It was not fun at all."

"You're sure about your decision? About Morrigan, I mean."

"Yes," Hermione affirmed resolutely. "Morrigan was very troubled. She lived a hard life. She never learned right from wrong. I had to teach her the difference."

"It sounds so easy," Remus said, smiling.

"Ha!" Hermione snorted. "I almost thought it was impossible. She resisted, but she was changing before she even realized she was."

"You really mean that?" Arthur asked, his head turned slightly to the side.

"I do," Hermione told them quietly, her expression quite serious. "Morrigan is ready to prove herself."

"If you insist," Remus sighed.

* * *

When the shouting stopped, Morrigan and Draco descended the stairs; having decided to determine what was going on now. They went into the sitting room, where Ginny, Ron, Harry and Hermione were situated comfortably.

Harry pulled up a chair for both and said, "They're pretty sure you're on the good side now, Flaherty."

Morrigan just stared at him. She had obviously been crying, and he almost felt bad for her. It was rather difficult to be too sympathetic after what she'd done to Ginny, though, and these thoughts of pity quickly vanished, regardless of Hermione's defense.

"Look, I want to offer you a job. If you're definitely on our side, I want you to go back to Voldemort's fortress and spy."

Morrigan flinched, then leaned away from him. "I'm sorry, no, I can't."

"Why not?" Harry asked crossly. "Without Malfoy there, we've got nobody."

"I just escaped from the darkness, why would I go back?" Morrigan demanded angrily. "Or don't you people understand anything the first time it's said?" Harry's other three companions were watching, frozen.

"Look, you could make up for the things you've done."

"That's really low, Potter," Morrigan growled. "You know who you sound like? The Dark Lord. I've heard him use the same ploy on more people than I can count on two hands. And they always end up dead. So you think I'm taking you up on that offer? Hell no."

"At least I'm willing to give something up for others."

"I don't see you volunteering for the job," Morrigan sneered.

"Yes, I'd be the perfect candidate," Harry said sarcastically. '"Excuse me, could you do me a favor and stop trying to kill me for a moment so I can listen to what you're saying?"'

"Find someone else, I'm not doing it," Morrigan told him finally.

"Can't you convince her, Malfoy?" Harry asked angrily, turning to his fellow classmate. Already Draco was regretting having sat down with a group of people that hated him and Morrigan.

He paused, glancing at Morrigan, before answering, "I can't do that."

"Why not?" Harry demanded.

"I don't think she's the best candidate for the job either. Why should she go into the bleak world when all she wanted was to be out of it?"

"Yeah, she seemed so reluctant," Ginny snorted, but Harry silenced her with a look.

"Look, Malfoy, I realize that you don't like me, but you have to put that behind you."

"Actually, Potter, Granger and I are the only ones that seem to have done that. You don't see us bringing it up every five minutes."

"Oh please," Harry growled. "You've always been jealous--"

"Shut up, Potter. Draco wasn't attacking you, he was just rebuking your argument," Morrigan defended Draco.

"I don't have to listen to a coward," Harry sneered at Morrigan, and instantly Draco, Morrigan, and Hermione leapt to their feet.

"Harry!" Hermione snapped. "That's enough!"

"Oh, so you trust them, Hermione?"

"Of course I do! They're my friends, and they alone have been acting rationally here today, so I suggest you back off. All of you," she warned Ginny and Ron.

With a furious snort, Ginny tramped out of the room, down the hallway, and out of the house with a slam. Ron looked furiously between Hermione and Draco for a moment, and followed his sister out of the house. Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, and Lupin hurried into the sitting room. "What happened?" Molly asked wearily.

"Ron and Ginny left," Hermione replied shortly, and Remus left to follow them, with the Weasley parents on his heels. The door slammed behind them, and Mrs. Black began to scream loudly. "I'm leaving," Harry told them brusquely, then went out into the hallway. Morrigan watched him leave but then ran after him. "Potter!" she called.

"What?" he snapped, turning around. He grabbed his coat from the rack beside him, slinging it on and looking expectantly at Morrigan.

"Hermione told me to tell you," she said uncertainly, "about the location of a certain object."

"Which is?" Harry asked impatiently.

"Hufflepuff cup," she told him. Harry's eyes lit up.

"Where?" he asked eagerly, stepping forward and placing his hands on Morrigan's shoulders.

"In Parselart, his castle," she told him. "The library."

"And you could find it if we went there?"

"Yes," Morrigan confirmed.

Harry shook her hand happily. "Good, good. You did a good job, Morrigan."

"What's it about?" she asked eagerly.

"I'll tell you some other time," he told her, then opened the door and waved good-bye as he walked out onto the sidewalk and Apparated.