The Room of Lost Dreams

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Hermione tore down the corridor as quickly as her legs would carry her, as the pilfered bottles of Sanguinus Solution clinked softly in her handbag. She burst through the front doors to the general astonishment of the families and students who were eating in the Great Hall, and ran across the twilit lawns toward the Whomping Willow. She hurriedly charmed a rock to fly at the secret knot, and the tree stilled, allowing her access to the secret passageway.

Her lungs were burning by the time she pushed through the secret door into the Shrieking Shack, wand light piercing the gloom. The shack smelled of dust and dried blood, but it barely registered. She stared at the floor in dismay. Snape's body wasn't there.

She made a methodical circuit of the room, searching for any sign of him, but he was well and truly gone. At least there were no fresh bloodstains anywhere in the room. There were all sorts of footprints on the dusty floor, but nothing that clearly indicated when or where Snape's body had been taken.

She supposed that one of two things had occurred. Either Kingsley had told the Ministry where to find Snape's body, or someone else had taken it for their own purposes. She preferred not to consider the latter option.

A loud crash outside the shack made her drop into duelling stance until she recognised a familiar song floating through the air. A drunken duet had seen fit to serenade all of Hogsmeade with a ribald version of 'Weasley is our King.'

Weasley's broomstick's long and thin,
But always gets his Quaffle in,
He's sure to make the witches grin,
Weasley is our King!

She extinguished her wand and slipped out the door, sticking to the shadows of the familiar shop windows and houses on Hogsmeade's main street. At last, she spied the warm glow of the Three Broomsticks' windows and the familiar silhouette of Madam Rosmerta slouched in the doorway. She had Seamus in one hand and Neville in the other and would have been throwing them out if she hadn't been laughing so hard. Neville took a deep breath and belted out the next verse.

A Keeper's job's to make the save
And when those witches misbehave
Weasley's bravest of the brave,
Weasley is our King!

Fortunately all three were so far gone that they didn't notice her, even as she moved Neville bodily to the side as she passed. The pub was filled to overflowing, and everyone was drinking, laughing, and singing.

Hermione made a beeline for the fireplace, where six or seven of her classmates, several of whom were certainly under seventeen, had already passed out amongst their empty bottles. She grabbed a fistful of Floo Powder from the urn on the mantelpiece and tossed it into the fire. She stuck her head in the green flames and yelled, 'Kingsley Shacklebolt!'

Voldemort got quite a shock
When Weasley bashed him in the block,
With one swing of 'is giant cock!
Weasley is our King!

After what seemed like an eternity, Kingsley appeared. He was wearing a paisley dressing gown and looked grave.

'I'm so sorry to disturb you like this, sir,' she said with a rueful glance over her shoulder, 'but it's a matter of life and death. I need to know if Severus Snape's body has been found, and if so, where it is.'

His eyebrows shot up. 'I'll say this for you, Hermione, you don't mince words.'

'Please, there's not a moment to lose. Is there someone you can call?'

'I don't need to. Higgenbaum sent me a report before supper. He's not the brightest wand in the bunch, but he's thorough. Snape's body wasn't in the Shrieking Shack and he found traces of a Hover Charm that had been cast hours ago.'

'Was there anything to indicate who'd done it?'

'The charm was cast too long ago to identify its magical signature, and the footprints were inconclusive. Nobody in Hogsmeade reported seeing anyone entering or leaving the Shack, so we can assume that whoever took the body got in through the secret passage.'

Now Voldy's dead without a sob.
Was it Potter's wand what done the job?
Or was it really Weasley's nob?
Weasley is our King!

Hermione could barely hear Kingsley over the din. 'I hope you'll forgive my asking,' she yelled, 'but is Higgenbaum trustworthy?'

'Snape had enemies, but Higgenbaum is beyond suspicion. Content with his lot, so he can't be bribed. No secrets, so he can't be blackmailed. Besides, I didn't tell him whose body he was collecting, so he can't have told anyone else beforehand.'

'I can't thank you enough, Kingsley. I need to go now.'

'Well, at least take a copy of Higgenbaum's report,' he said, Replicating the parchment and handing it to her.

'Thanks, Kingsley. I won't forget this. Goodbye!'

She pulled her head from the flames only to be lifted into the air by Seamus and Neville. Madame Rosmerta was now asleep in a chair.

We hope you've all enjoyed our song
But if you think it's far too long,
It's time you met with Weasley's dong!
Weasley is our King!

Both boys planted sloppy kisses on her cheeks, and she managed to disentangle herself.

'Aww, Herm-my-knee,' slurred Seamus. 'Go on and give us a kiss. Singin's thirsty work.'

'Thanks, Seamus, but I have to go.'

'C'mon!' said Neville, who was swaying on his feet. 'We can all play a game of Hide-the-Wand!'

'All right,' said Hermione. 'Meet me upstairs.'

Seamus and Neville stared at each other in amazement.

'Told you it'd work eventually!' crowed Neville, thumping Seamus's shoulder.

They clambered over one another in eagerness to make it to a room. They disappeared into room twelve. When they didn't reappear a moment later, Hermione knew she could safely avoid room twelve for the rest of the evening. However, she needed a private place to read Higgenbaum's report, and she needed it now.

The loo was out, judging by the horrid retching noises that emanated from within. She decided to take her chances upstairs.

The first room she tried was so small that a leg kicked the door closed as soon as she opened it. The second room contained a couple making love so enthusiastically that they didn't even notice her standing in the doorway. The third room was pitch dark, but she easily identified Harry and Ginny from their enamoured whispers.

Hermione's face was bright red, but she knew what needed to be done. She reached into her handbag and pulled out a small phial of potion.

'Who's there?' Bollocks. Harry must have heard her.

'Look, I know it's none of my business, but unless I miss my guess, you might need this. I'm just leaving it by the door. It'll be effective if you use it within twenty-four hours.'

'Do you just happen to keep Contraceptive Potion on you, then?' Ginny's tone was so snippy that Hermione wondered if getting up the duff wasn't exactly what Ginny had in mind.

'I was in hiding with two boys for months,' she said archly. 'I was prepared for every eventuality.'

Let her chew on that. Hopefully, she wouldn't take it out on Harry.

Hermione skipped over the next door, which was room twelve, and finally found an empty room, though if the carpetbag on the luggage rack was any indication, it wouldn't be empty for long.

Hermione locked the door and began poring over Higgenbaum's report. It contained pictures of the various sets of fresh footprints and the rather horrific pool of blood. There were prints from Voldemort's bare feet and clawed toes, prints from Ron's trainers and Harry's, whose were slightly larger, her own, and finally, a pair that she recognised immediately as being from a pair of Plinths, which were generally worn by wealthy wizards who wished to subtly appear a few inches taller than they really were.

Now, that was curious. Why would someone affluent enough to purchase such shoes take on a dirty job like collecting a dead body instead of sending someone else? Unless the wizard didn't want anyone else to be involved. But if it were, say, a former Death Eater bent on desecrating or making an example of the body, surely he would have had friends to help or would have taken pains to disguise himself.

Something was niggling in the back of her mind. Something about the conversation Severus had forced her to overhear again. Voldemort had pulled Snape back from battle and had lectured him on wand lore while Snape begged to return, to get Harry.

You sound like Lucius. Neither of you understands Potter as I do.

Of course. The owner of those exorbitantly priced shoes had to be the sort of man who was confident that the Ministry could or would not touch him, and yet vain enough to wear elevator shoes.

There was only one missing piece of the puzzle. Why would Lucius steal Severus's body?

She added another locking spell to the door and pulled out the journal. The Dictoquill wrote faster than she did, so that would have to do.

'Severus, it's Hermione.'

'Did you find it?

'No. Somebody's taken the body. I spoke with the Minister, and I think I know who did it, but I need your help to approach the body-thief.'

What can I do?

'You can tell me exactly what is between you and Lucius Malfoy and any insight as to why he would steal your body.'

Her words faded into the page, and as Hermione pulled the journal towards herself, she fancied she felt a wave of embarrassment from the book.

'You needn't go into detail, Severus,' she said hastily. 'But I need to know if he would wish you ill. If you two have a- erm- special relationship, he might let me try to save you. But if you had some sort of rivalry, I think it'd be best to sneak into his house somehow.'

Unless things have changed drastically, Lucius is one of the few people in whom I would have confided. His intentions were never to be a lackey to the Dark Lord, and if he was treated as such, I can't imagine Lucius's loyalty would have lasted long.

Hermione nodded. 'That makes sense. Thanks, Severus. If we're lucky, you'll be reunited with your older, grumpier self in no time.'

You forgot 'uglier.'

Hermione smiled. 'Cheer up, Severus. You do grow into your nose eventually.'

Cheeky.

She couldn't help herself. She leaned down and gave the page an affectionate kiss. 'I've got to go now. Goodbye.'

She didn't bother wrapping her hand in fabric before closing the journal and allowed her fingertips to linger on the cover before stuffing it into her bag.

She picked her way through the figures sprawled on the stairs and threw another handful of Floo Powder into the fireplace. 'Malfoy Manor!' she cried, and disappeared in a swirl of green flame.

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