Hp: Hermione and Darkness

"Well, for one thing, she looked like a bloody toad," Harry said. "But there was just something creepy about her voice and the way she talked. But Dumbledore was brilliant. He said, 'If it is true that the Dementors are taking orders only from the Ministry of Magic, and it is also true that two Dementors attacked Harry and his cousin a week ago, then it follows logically that somebody at the Ministry might have ordered the attacks,' and then added, 'Of course, these particular Dementors may have been outside Ministry control.' Fudge went completely mental, screaming that there were no Dementors outside Ministry control because he knew the alternative was that Voldemort was controlling them. That was pretty much the beginning of the end of it all. After that, Fudge just kept making excuse after excuse, which Dumbledore countered. It was a massacre," Harry grinned. "Fudge looked like an idiot. Only he, the Toad Undersecretary, and maybe a handful of other Wizards voted to charge me. And that was that."

"What did Dumbledore say after it was all over?" Ginny asked.

Harry's face turned dark again. "Nothing. The git just walked out without even looking in my direction."

"I'm sure he has his reasons," Hermione said, primarily out of necessity. She didn't really believe it herself but didn't want Harry to let his anger get the best of him again.

"Well, whatever his reasons are, they're a bit dodgy, yeah?" Ron said. Hermione tried to quiet him with a look, but it didn't work. "The bloke owes you at least the courtesy of a civilised greeting after ignoring you all summer."

Harry nodded in agreement. "Oh," he added. "And guess who we caught Fudge talking with after the trial? Lucius Malfoy."

"What?!" Hermione gasped.

"Mr Weasley is going to let Dumbledore know. He suspects Malfoy is trying to bribe Fudge on Voldemort's behalf," Harry said.

Things just went from bad to worse, Hermione thought. If someone like Malfoy could infiltrate the Ministry even more than it already was, they were in serious trouble… even more than they usually were.

"But," Harry continued, interrupting Hermione's thoughts. "The Order doesn't think Fudge is under the Imperius Curse yet… but that means he's acting of his own accord, which may be even worse."

Hermione nodded. It was much, much worse.

They all sat in a heavy silence for a moment, the weight of the information settling over them. The threat felt closer now, more real, and it was clear to Hermione that they would need to be more vigilant than ever.

"We should probably get back to the kitchen," Ginny said quietly, breaking the silence. "Mum's going to wonder where we've disappeared to."

As they stood up and made their way out of the drawing room, Hermione couldn't shake the dread that had settled in her chest. This was just the beginning, and she knew that whatever came next, they would have to face it together.

She glanced at Harry, who seemed deep in thought and reached out to give his arm a reassuring squeeze. "We'll get through this, Harry," she said softly. "We always do."

Harry gave her a small, grateful smile, and as they walked down the hallway, Hermione felt a renewed sense of determination. They might be facing dark times, but they had each other, and that made all the difference."

 .....

Sirius had put up a terrific show of happiness on hearing the news that Harry could return to Hogwarts. Still, Hermione noticed he was even moodier and surlier than before. He barely spoke to anyone and spent more time shutting up in his mother's bedroom with Buckbeak. Crookshanks had also taken to spending most of the day with him, completely ignoring Hermione.

Surprisingly, Harry noticed Sirius's mood and confided in Hermione and Ron that he felt guilty for leaving Sirius all alone with his thoughts.

"Don't you go feeling guilty!" said Hermione sternly while they scrubbed out a mouldy cupboard on the third floor a few days later. "You belong at Hogwarts, and Sirius knows it. Personally, I think he's being selfish."

"That's a bit harsh, Hermione," said Ron, frowning as he attempted to prise off a bit of mould firmly attached to his finger. "You wouldn't want to be stuck inside this house without any company."

"He'll have company!" said Hermione. "It's Headquarters to the Order of the Phoenix, isn't it? He just got his hopes up that Harry would be coming to live here with him."

"I don't think that's true," said Harry. "He wouldn't give me a straight answer when I asked him if I could."

"He just didn't want to get his own hopes up even more," said Hermione wisely. "And he probably felt a bit guilty himself because I think a part of him was really hoping you'd be expelled. Then you'd both be outcasts together."

"Come off it!" said Harry and Ron together, but Hermione merely shrugged.

"Suit yourselves. But I sometimes think Ron's mum's right, and Sirius gets confused about whether you're you or your father, Harry."

"So you think he's touched in the head?" said Harry heatedly.

"No, I just think he's been very lonely for a long time," said Hermione simply. Regardless of how harsh it sounded, Harry needed to hear it.

At this point, Mrs Weasley entered the bedroom behind them.

"Still not finished?" she said, poking her head into the cupboard.

"I thought you might be here to tell us to have a break!" said Ron bitterly. "D'you know how much mould we've got rid of since we arrived here?"

"You were so keen to help the Order," said Mrs Weasley. "You can do your bit by making Headquarters fit to live in."

"I feel like a house elf," grumbled Ron.

Hermione seized the moment. "Well, now you understand what dreadful lives they lead. Perhaps you'll be a bit more active in SPEW!" she said hopefully as Mrs Weasley left them to it. "In fact, this could be an opportunity. We could organise a sponsored scrub of Gryffindor common room, all proceeds to SPEW. It would raise awareness as well as funds."

"I'll sponsor you to shut up about spew," Ron muttered irritably.

....

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