Free Will and Fate

Professor McGonagall paced back and forth in her office, the sound of her footfalls obscured by the worried murmurings of the portraits around her. She tapped her wand against her palm as she walked; it shot out bright red sparks at every hit.

"Minerva?"

"I know what you're going to say, Albus." She stopped pacing long enough to glare at the portrait that had gone still again. "I pulled him directly out of class. There wasn't enough time for him to take an antidote for the Veritaserum. And I'm positive Severus gave me the correct potion. He seemed almost gleeful about it." She resumed her pacing.

"That's not what was I going to say at all," he responded when she had grown quiet. "I'm going to have Magical Law Enforcement and possibly the Department of Mysteries investigate this. I don't know how it's possible, but it seems we have two."

"Two?" A look of confusion briefly crossed her face. "Two Harry Potters?" McGonagall stopped and stared at the painting behind her, where the normally composed Albus Dumbledore sat looking just as agitated and bewildered as she felt. "That's not possible."

"I never assume I know all that is possible where magic is concerned. If he was indeed telling the truth--and I believe only a very powerful wizard could resist the affects of even a normal dose of Veritaserum--there is no recourse we can take that would not endanger him and the young man in St. Mungo's at this very moment."

"But--but, then what do we do? I've never seen anything like this before."

"Nor have I, but there's got to be an explanation for it. If a Hogwarts professor is involved--"

"You believe that?" McGonagall stared at the man in the frame, hoping he would negate her question.

"Do you believe it was possible for Harry to lie given the extreme dose of Veritaserum you gave him? I don't believe he'll be capable of telling any sort of lie for a few days, at the very least. That on it's own will put him in a great deal of danger."

"But a Hogwarts professor? Who? Why?"

"That's what the young man who has just left your office wishes to find out, Minerva," Dumbledore said. "Short of arresting him, I don't believe there's anything we can do to stop him from this quest. And if there is no proof as of yet, forcing him to accuse one of his professors will only result in a tragic end for both young men, I am afraid. No, we cannot act until we get more information."

"Then I've failed," she said, her voice and expression weary. "I wasn't supposed to appear suspicious, but the more he answered my questions, the more I felt something was wrong."

"You acted just as I would have Minerva, if not a sight more calmly. You did everything you could."

She shook her head. "I did every spell I could think of before giving him the Veritaserum, and he had no reaction."

"He was not in disguise," Dumbledore said simply. "He is Harry Potter."

"But the boy in the hospital?" She sighed and fell into the chair behind her desk, facing the portrait. "And the scar on his forehead, what of that?"

"That is curious," the wizard responded. "On the surface, it does not appear to be a serious wound. I would have to examine it more closely to be positive, but surely you realize, if it was a normal cut, it would've been healed by now. Even if it had been inflicted yesterday."

McGonagall nodded absently, her mind still on the interrogation that hadn't gone as well as she'd planned.

"The scar appeared to be bothering him a great deal. That boy has been touched by a curse. You will have to gain his trust to find out how."

"Me? He already knows I gave him something. What reason would he have to trust me now?"

"He has every reason in the world," Dumbledore said. "If he is truly in danger at Hogwarts, you're the only person who can keep him alive."

Harry hesitated, but after a few long moments, he circled the table and put an arm around Hermione. Her crying at his last statement had unsettled him, but there was nothing he could do to take it back or undo the truth of it. This had become a matter of life and death and her first instinct, to get someone else involved, would resolve the matter. And not in a way that would most benefit Harry.

She pushed against his chest and pulled away, rising from the table and walking across the room. Hermione turned back to face him and wiped at her streaming eyes with the heels of her hands. "So, when you kissed me last night...?"

Harry let his eyes drop and felt a lurch deep in his stomach as her sobbing grew louder. "I'm sorry," he said. "I never meant to hurt you."

"You never meant to hurt me?" she shrieked. "What did you think would happen when you kissed me back? I thought...well, never mind what I thought. If you really cared about me, as a friend, you never would've done that to me." She crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Why didn't you tell me any of this last night?"

"I didn't think it would go this far, actually." He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "I expected the other me would show up to Hogwarts and Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall would help me get back to where I need to be. Besides, would you have believed me? I don't think you believe me now."

She took a deep breath and shook her head. "I don't know what to think. This seems too elaborate an excuse just to break up with me. You know you can talk to me about anything," she added almost as an afterthought.

That wouldn't have necessarily been true before, but as of now, Hermione was the only person he could depend on. The only person he could rely on when everything seemed to be going to hell. "That's why I'm telling you the truth," Harry said quietly. "If it helps, I think Professor McGonagall gave me Veritaserum when I was in her office."

Hermione's eyes narrowed. "Why would she do that? It's forbidden to use on students. Did you do something to provoke it?"

"I think...I think she knows I'm not really supposed to be here. That's why she pulled me out of class to question me. My mum got an Owl from St. Mungo's this morning, maybe the school did too. I think that's where I am."

Hermione sat down on the sofa hard, shaking her head. "I don't suppose you have an explanation for that." She let her head fall back and stared at the ceiling, her voice reduced to a whisper. "None of this makes any sense."

"I know and I'm sorry."

"Stop saying that!"

"I--" Harry hesitated. He couldn't be sure how much of the rest of the story she'd believe, but he had to take a chance. It was too late to turn back now. "You may not believe this, but I think Snape had me attacked yesterday. At King's Cross. You said that my things were on the train, but I wasn't?" She made a noise of assent. "He seemed very surprised to see me at school this morning. Then he threatened me."

At this, Hermione sat up and stared at him.

"He said something along the lines of, he didn't know how I managed it and I had better stay out of his way. I think he tried to kill me." Harry closed his eyes as the words left his mouth; they rang true the more he considered it. "Whatever I was getting into...before...he was very upset about it. He's watching me now. If I go to anyone, including Professor McGonagall, he's going to hurt me again. Next time I might not be lucky enough to end up in the hospital."

Hermione let this sink in for a minute before responding. "You're right, I don't--I don't know what to think." She began twirling a lock of her hair around her finger, her gaze unfocused as she continued processing everything he'd told her. "What will you do? What if he does something anyway? How will anyone know?"

"I've already warned Professor McGonagall that someone at the school might be after me. If...something happens to me, it'll be up to you to tell her who I suspect." Harry's eyes widened as another thought occurred to him. He kneeled in front of Hermione and took both her hands in his. "You have to promise me something."

"I can't," she began. At his entreating look, tears began to fill her eyes again. "What?"

"You can't let on that you know anything," Harry said. "You have to act normal in class, around the school, any time you're around him. If Snape even suspects I've told you anything, he'll do something to you. I can't let anything happen to you."

She stared at him a moment. "Even though I'm only your friend?"

Harry flinched at the bitter note to her voice. Though he understood it, it was still difficult to bear. "Especially because you're my friend. It would kill me if anything happened to you."

She looked surprised at this, but covered it up by pulling her hands from his and wiping away the tears that still streaked down both cheeks. "So, now what?"

"First, I think, we have to pretend to still be a couple."

Hermione's hands dropped from her face. "What?"

Harry didn't like the low grumble that was passing for Hermione's voice. He stood and backed away a few steps, suddenly glad she'd left her wand on the table. "Just in public, for appearances. He'll be looking for any signs of a change around me. I can't let him find anything. Not until I know what really happened yesterday and why. And being close to you will be the best way I can make sure you stay safe."

Hermione just stared at Harry, her expression mutinous.

"I also need to find out what was going on before school started. Yesterday, you said," he paused as Hermione rolled her eyes, "You said I had a lot going on. I need you to tell me everything. If we're really that close--" he ignored her deepening frown at this-- "I had to have told you something useful."

She didn't say anything for a long while, seeming to stare at a point somewhere over Harry's shoulder. Finally, she nodded and looked at him. "There's a lot I can tell you. It'll have to wait, though. We both have class in a few minutes and then Double Defense Against the Dark Arts," she said on a sigh. "If there was any class I'd like to avoid now, I would if I could."

"Why?" Harry asked, though he thought he already knew the answer.

"Being in a room with your stepfather where I'm supposed to be learning to defend myself--Harry, it's the ultimate in irony. I don't know how I'm going to get through the class without letting on that I know anything."

"You have to, Hermione. It's my life on the line."

She nodded. "And now mine too."